Ba'slan'at ti ba'slat
by LadyIunara
Summary: She had evaded the Empire for a decade, having been smuggled away for her own safety when the Empire first formed. Now she had a life, purpose even. One day it all catches up to her and she finds herself running with Boba Fett from both the Empire and the Rebels. All she wanted was a quiet life. What she got was anything but.
1. Chapter 1

**AN: In case you are wondering the title is a translation of "to exit into a place with the entrance". It was taken from a proverb which stated "to fall into the house with the door." Here I took it as a surprise twist on the events in your life induced by an individual.**

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There would be a thunderstorm soon. That much Altharya could tell from the dark grey clouds hanging low in the sky, covering the mountain to the monastery. It also smelled like rain hanging heavily in the air, pressing down on her nose and skin, prickling at the sensation. Another night where she was glad she was not in the clinic, but at home enjoying a cup of tea. Her shoulders still ached from the surgery she had to assist in. A good night's sleep was well-deserved at that point.

The hair on her neck suddenly stood on end and something cold ran down her spine. She straightened her back. _What_? The last time she had felt this… no, she would not think about it now. It was so long ago. _No one could know_! Stop, deep breaths. The cooling air filled her chest as her head calmed. Her vision narrowed down on her surroundings. Nothing out of the ordinary, but the cold feeling of dread remained. Why could she not have a nice and relaxing evening with a good holo-series?! She had a rifle and knew how to use it. Though, last time she had that feeling she narrowly escaped a genocide. Maybe she could return to the clinic and request her two days off be moved?

 _Coward_. There was nothing. No one knew and no one was interested anymore. She swiped the key card to her modest apartment and entered. The lights switched on immediately, a sense of home soothing out her frayed nerves. How silly of her to even think that someone had found out her secret.

What she needed was tea and a bath. Yawning she walked past her bedroom when her senses tugged back her to the cold depths of dread. Her rifle was in there. Maybe she'd feel better with it within arm's reach? Not that she didn't live in a seedier side of town. Heck, the entirety of the planet was covered by outlaws, smugglers, pirates and people fleeing from the empire. Just… no one was stupid enough to hurt their only chance for medical attention for several parsecs? Right?

She was just too tired. That must be it. Exhaustion and paranoia. Opening the door to her small bedroom, she saw nothing out of the ordinary. Her holo communicator was still on her night stand, the sheets looked like she had left them this morning.

It felt … _off_. She couldn't put her finger on it. But there was something odd about the room. As if a presence was lingering in the air. She did not know why, but her senses seemed to pick up electrical charges in her room. As if _someone_ had been here. Who? There was no way she would not have noticed something amiss if she hadn't… No no, she must not even _think_ about that. She could always hide out in the temple up on the mountain nearby. A few days completely shut away with just herself as company. Absolutely wonderful….

Before she could take another step forward her insides suddenly screamed in agony. She had to lean against the doorframe for support as her knees buckled. This was a bad idea. Back to the kitchen it was. At least her rifle was in grabbing range. As her fingers closed around the cool metal, her insides untwisted slightly. Not completely. What was she to do? Pack the bare essentials that were not in her bedroom? No change of clothes, only food and hygiene products. How screwed was she?

Her kitchen looked untouched. The sense of wrongness prevailed though. It was almost as if she could _see_ a shape shifting around. Whoever got in must be sick. To not steal anything, just to look at her stuff! That was usually a stalker who got brash enough to trespass. She had seen the corpses of the people who had fallen prey to a few of those stalkers. And she was not about to become one of them if she could have a say in it.

A backpack. That was what she needed first. Bending down to the cupboard below the sink, she opened it to retrieve her backpack. Her nerves tingled when she touched the fabric. So the intruder had rummaged through it? There was nothing in there… except… oh no. Practically ripping open the bag, she was greeted with nothing. It was _gone_. Her breathing started to become erratic. She should have gotten rid of it. Thrown it into an ocean or wherever!

Everyone knew a jedi was no longer safe. Bounty hunters would be on her trail soon. Last she heard there was an incredible sum on any jedi's head delivered to the Empire. She couldn't stay here anymore. There was no way she could ever return to Teth and live to the end of her days. Just where else could she go?

No, she would worry about this later. She needed to get out of here. NOW!

Essentials were hastily swiped into her bag, any thoughts of an evening relaxing gone. Rifle still in hand she practically fell out of the door and ran. Her neck felt like a cold iron hand had wrapped around it, squeezing.

It wasn't raining yet to her immense relief. The streets were darkened though with the now blackish grey skies and empty of all life. They were all probably in the cantina or in their rooms. The storms on Teth were merciless. Her feet took her somewhere; her mind was not controlling them. Hopefully somewhere she could breathe, plan and disappear again. There was an alley she could take. The wall was low enough for her to climb it. With luck she'd be over it and a few more . Surely no one could track her that fast? _Right_?!

The wall ended a little above her head. She had climbed it maybe one or twice before in her childhood. It couldn't be that difficult still. Slinging her rifle onto her back, she crouched down eyeing the ledge. Flinging her body upwards her fingers found the ledge sure enough, as her boots tried to find purchase on the smooth steel. Her arms shook underneath her own weight as she pulled herself up. She huffed in surprise. Had she gained weight… no it was the rifle and her backpack. Slowly she managed to lift herself so that her waist was on the ledge. _Nearly there_ …

The iron hand around her throat tightened….

Something hit the back of her right leg hard. A surprised yell escaped from her throat as she lost her balance and fell backwards. Air rushed past her ears, the world tilted so that she could only see the tall grey walls and the dark grey sky above her now.

The impact knocked all air out of her body, her skull screamed in agony as it connected with the ground underneath her. Sharp needles prodded her brain. _Concussion? Breathe. In and out_.

 _Run idiot_! Her chest hurt so much.

A face shifted into her vision. Two horns with lekku draping over his shoulder. Togruta? Heavily armoured too and with a grappling gun in his other hand. So he had gotten her with a rope. Bastard.

What was she doing? She had to run, fight.. or or whatever! Problem was her arms, her legs were not obeying her. Her mind screamed at her to move.

"Well well, looks like we have a flighty one here," the Togruta smirked revealing sharp canine teeth. Groaning she rolled to her side, only to be kicked viciously in the side with an armored boot. She curled up in pain, her hands clutching around the side that was kicked. It hurt so much, breathing became painful as her gut revolted against the pain.

"One would think jedi were tougher," another one?! It sounded female. She was screwed. No screwed no longer began to describe it anymore. She was _dead_! Tears pricked around her eyes. Oh no. Was she going to be a pathetic sniffling youngling again? She had never been a jedi!

"I am no jedi," she wheezed out, rolling onto her stomach as someone ripped her rifle off of her back. The strap snapping and hitting her in the jaw. It was a sharp and short sting, gone immediately compared to her skull trying to split itself apart. Her forehead creased on its own. As if it would relieve any pain.

"Sure you are," a gloved hand suddenly was underneath her chin yanking it up abruptly. The base of her skull hit her spine and… oh by the Force did it send a stab of pure molten lava behind her eyes. Sickly yellow eyes bored into hers curiously. Another Togruta. Then Altharya's eyes fell onto the holoprojector in the bounty hunter´s hand almost next to her face. Surely enough her face was there, a bit pixelated. But that was her face! Who wanted her?

"You are going to fetch us a handsome price, _jedi_ ," the man sneered off to her side, the rope around her leg unwound, snapping back into his gauntlet. Her leg felt numb from how tight the rope had been around it. Hands were suddenly on her wrists, twisting them in front of her. She had to bite her lip in order to cry out in pain again. This was it. She was dead.

Cool metal snapped into place around her wrists and hands were underneath her armpits, effortlessly lifting her. Backpack was gone, the weight suddenly missing from her shoulders. She was on her feet again, her right leg giving out underneath her. Pins and needles in her calf. There was no way she could outrun them like that.

"That was easy," the female stated. Almost looked disappointed. Narrowing her eyes on the female, she really wanted to spit into her face. Though, giving a side glance to the female's companion she'd have her skull crushed if she did that. It was still too tender and hurting from the previous impact. Colours were starting to merge. Concussion, definitely. _Oh great_ ….

"Easy money. Can't complain," the male shrugged yanking her forward. She stumbled, her knees buckling underneath her and she would have greeted the floor with her face this time if she wasn't held firmly in place.

"You know we are to deliver her alive," the female remarked off handedly as she grabbed her backpack. She gave it one disgusted look and then rummaged through it.

"No credits? I see you are also stupid," she scoffed and tossed the bag into a garbage chute behind her. Altharya saw red though. That was given to her by her mentor! She would be damned if she would let this slide! Throwing her body weight forward to the female, she caught the male by surprise and he nearly let her go. Nearly. But he didn't.

"Ohhh, someone is angry," the female taunted. Fuck yes! She snarled now. Ow, wrong move. Her head exploded into pain again.

"Enara, leave it," the male growled now.

"Pff, as if she could do something to us. A weak jedi who is a medic. Pathetic," Enara turned around and started walking towards the mouth of the alley.

With a jerk, Altharya felt herself being hauled up. Her stomach connected painfully with an armored shoulder. Bile rose to her throat and it burned… By the Force it burned so badly!

Choking and coughing, she tried to put her upper body to an upright position. Her hands slipped on his armor though, not finding enough grip. She started to thrash around. If she was going to die then with a fight. She'd be damned if she was just going to lay down and take it.

"Hold still," the male swore, gripping her legs in an iron grip. She wanted to scream, her throat burned from the bile still. Nothing came out when she opened her mouth. She hit his back with her fist.

If he felt anything at all, he didn't show it. But her hand, it felt numb from the impact and she knew it will be burning in pain later down the line. If she had not broken a bone or two in the process.

Her head swung around, her temples throbbed in pain and she had to bite her lips hard in order not to cry out from the pain. The back of the alley, the wall where she had almost tasted freedom retreated growing smaller. It was if they were taunting her. Tears ran down her face freely now. Would anyone miss her? The good doctor would miss the extra hands. Anything else? No. She had no one.

There was something behind the wall. A helmet? It was round like one with the antenna for holo communication sticking out of it. Help? With eyes wide open she frantically waved towards the stranger that was rising from behind the wall. A jetpack? Her throat only emitted a rasp, still too raw from the bile.

The armour. Her arm froze midair when it hit her. Terror gripped her throat, ice ran down her spine. Mandalorian. Given by the green colouring it was…

 _Boba Fett_. The most notorious bounty hunter in the galaxy. After her?!

Oh no… Her shaking became uncontrollable now. Her teeth chattered against each other. Oh no. Oh no… She was dead.

Then he disappeared behind the corner the other two took. Making him vanish from her view.

But now she was shaking. Boba Fett. He was after her. Out of all the bounty hunters out there. It had to be him.

"Guys?" she no longer cared if the other two idiots had her right now. If Boba's reputation was anything to go by they would be dead by night time. _All life is sacred_ …

"What is it now?" The male asked exasperated, making Erana chuckle.

"Let her speak. I find the snivel of scum like her amusing," she could not see Erana's face, but she was pretty sure she was smirking her way.

"Boba Fett is here," she could feel the silence falling over them now. The head near her waist moved towards her. Was he looking at Erana? Then she was shaken by roaring laughter.

"That was a good one," the male gasped. "But Boba Fett? No way."

"Tren, maybe we should check?" Erana sounded unsure now. Altharya felt the fear rolling off the female. As she should, but could they hurry up?

"Erana, she is probably trying to get us to mess up. Jedi, remember?" Tren scoffed.

She screamed out from pain this time. Gasping she felt her muscles spasm from the electric shock given to her side. All strength left her limbs and she hang from his shoulder like a sack of Urena-flour.

"One more of those stunts and I will cut a finger off," Tren threatened lowly and her gut seized in terror. They were in another street now, the yellowish light casting an omnious shadow on the ground. Her neck prickled and she felt like she was being observed. If she could only lift her head to see… It was the Mandalorian. She really did not want to get into his hands. Even less of a chance to escape.

"Erana?" They stopped moving now. This time she could practically taste the terror from Erana. Silence. Altharya closed her eyes and tried to recall what had been said to her so many years ago. _Extend your mind, forget your body_.

It was faint, she was untrained. But the two presences near here were unmistakably her captors. One was flickering with fear and the other was blinking in confusion.

"Tren," Erana's voice wavered. "I think I just heard a jetpack." Altharya's mind slammed back into her body leaving her faint.

Silence, heavy on her shoulders and head which still pounded from the mental exertion and the hit it took back in the alley. But this time… she could feel the same electric presence in the air around them. Anticipation building up in her mangled body.

So Boba Fett had been in her apartment. All breath left her lungs. He had been after her for longer than a few hours then. Longer maybe. A hunter who toyed with his prey. And she fell right for his trick to get her out of her apartment. Her forehead connected hard with Tren's armour as she was roughly jostled around when both Togruta broke into a run.

She saw double now. The scratches on the armor were blurry and there were multiple of them now. Escape was completely out of question now. Tears dripped onto the armor now, the scratches jumping around from the hasty movements of the Togruta.

"This way," Erana suddenly called out and she felt her body changing direction suddenly, her arms flailing to the side.

Finally… finally she was able to lift her head a bit. From the haziness she saw a green blur at the distance. Her hand began to sting now as she curled her fingers into a fist. She saw the streak of red flashing in the distance as it zipped past her head, singing her hair and slammed into Tren's chest. He yelled, collapsing onto his knees, dropping her to the ground. The cuffs digging into the flesh of her wrists as they snapped into two pieces from the impact. She rolled out of the way, crawling to her feet. Where was she?

A blue flag hung above one of the doorways. The house of the Xantis. She was close to the jungle! Her heart lifted at the sliver of hope. Colours and shapes righted themselves again. Erana was next to her grabbing Tren's arm frantically.

"Let's go," she screamed at her partner who groaned at the chest wound his hand clutching the hole in his armor.

There was a street somewhere that led straight towards the end of town. Altharya scrambled to her feet, her knees still wobbly, but her feet were sure enough to where they were taking her. Her vision narrowed down to the corner where she knew she had a short stretch to sprint before she could hide in the shadows of the dark trees.

"Shit she is getting away!" _Duck_! As if on instinct she ducked into a nearby road. Not the one she was hoping to get, but she narrowly avoided a green blaster bolt to the head. Her chest rose rapidly, her ribcage hurt. Could she really do this? No, stop thinking, keep running! She hurtled her body further, her mind not capable of catching up yet. More blaster fire came her way and she had to press herself closer to a wall in order to avoid more wildly aimed shots.

"TREN!" It was filled with agony and grief. Dread settled into her mind and everything cleared up from the haze that had settled into it. Tren was dead, she no longer could feel his presence. Rage gripped her heart making it stutter. _Erana's_ rage.

There was a ladder to the roof. A roof that had enough walls and stuff there for her to hide get her bearings. Especially where she was currently. No supplies, nothing! For Force's sake she really could not worry about that right now! As fast as she could she climbed the ladder and fell down on the other side of the wall onto a small flat roof. On her back she drew her first long breath. Her lungs ached, her hand stung and her head was still pounding. Not good, not good at all! A dead bounty hunter, an enraged bounty hunter and Boba Fett were after her. If she could she would just curl up in a ball and cry at her misery but she had to move.

"Where are you, you bitch?!" Erana. Oh shit. Altharya rolled to her side and began crawling away from the voice. There were other roofs nearby she could jump to. Her only chance. She had to try. Pulling herself up she saw the gap and her breath stopped. She couldn't possibly jump that far. Not on her own… but with… No. She couldn't! Hesitating she gripped the edge too tightly, her hand twitched in protest. Though, she squeezed her eyes shut, she had no other way. No one would be able to see her from up here.

"YOU!" Erana. She was found. Turning her head she saw a seething Togruta standing on the edge where the ladder had been. Blaster shaking in her hand. Slowly she got on her feet. Her hands were not trembling, a strange sense of calm spreading from her chest to every fiber of her body. She was not afraid. Not of this Erana.

Erana jumped down, landing with a heavy thud as the first rain drop fell onto her face. Straightening her spine her hands lifted without her consciously controlling them.

"You will pay for Tren," Erana spat on the ground. She was limping. A blood trickle was at her side. The blaster was now aimed for her face. It was shaking. Erana cursed underneath her breath and used her other hand to steady it.

"I am not here," Altharya felt herself saying. Her voice was still scratchy, but it sounded sure and steady.

"What?" Erana just frowned at her. Then her face twisted into a snarl. "How stupid do you think I am?"

"I am not here!" she repeated. Erana stumbled, lowering the blaster while her face had a dazed expression.

What just happened? No, she could not question it. She had to _run_! Whirling around, she took a running start and jumped onto the ledge, air rushing past her sore ears. Her legs ached as she bent her knees and catapulted herself through the air. Her stomach and heart felt like they leapt into her throat as she sailed over the gap between the buildings. _She did it_! Her boots connected with the opposite building's ledge and she tumbled down onto its roof and rolled behind a crate. Trying to catch her breath, her mind finally caught up with her. Had she just jumped a several meter wide gap?! Damn her chest hurt… she curled up slightly as if to ease the pain.

She could not stay here. Boba was still around and he _will_ catch her sooner than later if she stayed here. Groaning she rolled to her side propping herself up onto her elbows. Rain was starting to pelt down on her, her fingers started to become stiff from the cold. Wincing she wobbled onto her feet and stumbled forward to the next ledge.

A furious shriek reached her through the rushing of blood in her ears. _Uh oh_ … Erana had snapped out of it.

Suddenly the building beneath her shook. Then her ears split into two when a large explosion rocked the opposite rooftop. Heat washed over her as the shockwave blew her back onto her knees. Hastily she crawled behind a covered ventilation-shed. Boba had caught up it seems. Shit. Fuck.

She looked around panicked while clutching her throbbing head. There was another rooftop and beyond that she saw no more buildings. Had she unwittingly found her way to her best hiding spot? Not that she would complain. She had jumped a further distance than before, so she could do it again. So she stumbled her way over until… A blaster bolt impacted right in front of her feet and she spun around to come face to face with two bounty hunters that were after her. Erana had her blaster aimed at her still.

Something pricked her in the chest and she instinctively looked down. A dart stuck from her chest. What? Then her fingers lost feeling first, then her arms… A sedative. No! She fell to the side, clutching at the ledge with all her might as Erana engaged Boba with a furious howl.

"You killed him!" She shrieked as she unleashed a volley of unaimed blaster fire.

Altharya only watched a moment with wide eyes how Boba easily side stepped her and extended an arm. No she was not going to watch whatever he was going to do to Erana. Her head fell to the side onto the ledge. The drop was way down. It seemed the building had been built on a rather steep cliff. Her stomach plummeted.

The scream from Erana made her recoil in horror. That scream, she had heard it when people lost their limbs when the pain set in after the shock. Involuntarily she looked back. Her muscles seized up at the sight. Erana was on fire. Flesh was melting from her hands, there was bone and the screaming continued. The lekku were twisting up from the heat and blackened to charcoal. Bile rose up again when the stench hit her nose. By the Force…. _Monster_.

Finally the screaming stopped and the burning… pile of flesh fell still crackling. Her eyes snapped up to the most feared bounty hunter out there. His visor gave her no indication if he was even looking at her.

No, she'd rather die than be in the hands of such a monster. With the last strength that remained in her legs she pushed upwards, her upper body sliding over the ledge and then she fell.

The air whistled past her as her arms flew up as if she was reaching out to be caught. Anything was better than being in Boba Fett's grasp. She could see his helmet peering over. He would not be collecting this bounty. A smile formed knowing she had messed up his plans, how else would he be able to prove she was dead if her body was smashed to bits by the rocks below her?

To her horror, Boba lifted away and she could see the flames coming out of his jet pack. _No_ … He rushed down towards her, his arms outstretched. There was no way she'd reach the bottom before he caught her. She had failed and her heart sank. How could she fool herself into believing that _she_ could ever escape someone like him?

He caught her around her chest and forced them into a straight line above the jungle that started a bit away from the cliff. The force of the change in direction slammed her limbs down, pulling on her joints. If she could, she'd have groaned in pain.

Her arms were growing too heavy from the sedative as were her eyelids. His helmet had only looked down once and then back up to wherever they were flying. Her legs completely lost feeling now and she could feel her heart slowing down. How could she have been so stupid?!

She almost lost consciousness when she finally got a word out, "No."

If he had heard it didn't show and her senses were too weak to reach out. Then her eyes closed and everything went dark.

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 **AN: Please review, follow or favourite if you liked it. If not, do tell me why. I aim to improve.**


	2. Chapter 2

It was cold. So so cold. She was lying on something hard, with something soft underneath her head. But whatever hard ground she was lying on still pressed through the softness and into her skull and something hard and cool pressed into her neck. Her head… it was still aching behind her forehead. Her blood was rushing in her ears still and it made her wince instinctively. She tried wiggling a finger. The tendons in her wrist strained against something metallic wrapped tightly around them, digging uncomfortably into the bone. Cuffs? Why?

Then it all came crashing down on her, squeezing the air out of her lungs. She had been caught by Boba Fett and was somewhere dry. A small mercy? Her ears finally cleared and she could hear the humming of a machine and… was that the pitter-patter of rain? It sounded removed, like drumming onto stone. Where was she? Where was Boba?

A groan escaped her involuntarily and she could hear shuffling to her right now. It sounded like armor scraping against stone approaching her. She braced herself for sensing the same electrical charges in the air accumulating around her that preceded his presence. Squeezing her eyes shut more tightly, she waited for it. And waited.

 _Nothing_. What was going on? Why wasn't she _sensing_ him? Digging deep within herself she tried to feel what she really cannot ever pin down when it happened. A void was all she felt. Was she without the Force? Her mind started spiraling down and her lungs crushed underneath an invisible weight as she struggled to breathe. Where was her connection?! Where was it?! Feverishly she tried to connect with the energy around her, the missing sense making itself more known than before. Her limbs were still too weak to move, otherwise she was sure they'd be flailing around and she'd be tearing at herself now. All she wanted was her connection back!

Ugh, her head! The pain was sharper and more pronounced now, digging deeper into her brain. Wincing she refused to open her eyes still. If she did it meant admitting she was without something so integral to her being that she'd rather die right now. It was as if a hole was opening in her chest waiting to consume her fully. Right now she was willing to die, anything was better than … this!

A cold hand clamped down on her shoulder, grounding her to something. She could feel the armor through her clothes, pressing down into her bones. Her eyes flew open in surprise and she stared into a human face. _Boba Fett's face_. Frowning she took him in. Where was his signature helmet? This did not look like the monster that melted another person! Now her body was trembling uncontrollably, as everything froze inside of her. She could not discern his expression. There was barely any emotion displayed in it and without the Force she could not even have that tiny advantage.

"Calm down," it was deep and vibrated through her and she could feel herself relax instinctively. Was this why people were in awe of him? Of his sheer presence? No, she could not let her guard down in front of him. Not ever! The trembling progressed into shaking now, her poor teeth chattering against each other again.

He sighed when he noticed it was not working.

"I will sedate you the entire way if I have to." Why wasn't he already doing that? She wanted to scream at him, claw at him.

"What…" she had to lick her lips, feeling how cracked it was from dehydration, "did…" she had to draw a labored breath "did you do to me?" Her voice cracked towards the end and she hated how weak she sounded. In front of the most feared bounty hunter in the galaxy. It was embarrassing.

"I see you never heard of the force restraint collars," he sounded amused now, his lips curling into a smirk. But for her the wall could have crashed around them. She would not have cared. He took the Force from her. Temporarily, but he still did it. How tempting it was to rip into him, claws and teeth. No, she must not think that. Then again, how long ago has she ever lived by the principles drilled into her mind as a child? The burnt body of Erana appeared in her mind, the charcoal skin still blistering in her ears. He was ruthless. All she could hope was for small mercies and that might be too much to hope for.

"I am no Jedi," she rasped out in desperation. He was after a jedi? Tough luck, she hadn't been one ever. Not trained enough in the Force to be of any threat. His eyebrows shot up and he looked like he was biting down laughter at that point.

"What you did with Erana was something completely different, eh?" he mocked her now. He had seen! Somehow she was not really surprised. Of course he did. Why in the galaxy would he not? Then… wait… he knew the bounty hunter's name. Confused she frowned up to him. Was she being idiotic and not realizing that most bounty hunters knew the others' names? Or was she overthinking everything again? If she could just… She cringed when her mind drifted to the lack of the Force again.

"I…" she was at a loss for words now. Normally she had no problems firing back at rowdy patients, but this? No chance.

"Don't bother lying. It will not win you any favours."

"I do not know," it was the truth. He could chew on it for all she cared. If his eyebrows could have gone any higher, she was sure his would have disappeared into the hairline now.

"You sure seemed to know what you were doing. The collar stays on," he dismissed her casually. Hand withdrawing from her shoulder, but the feeling of being grounded remained. Small mercies, she had to remind herself.

Something suddenly dangled in front of her nose. A chain with a small crystal attached to it, a lightsaber crystal. From the Jedi who had rescued her all those years ago. Her only reminder of happier times now a screaming taunt in her face.

"Peculiar how someone who claims to be not a Jedi has one of these. Especially if it is not on the black market," his grin that bared teeth made her shiver in fear. She had doomed herself by keeping onto sentimentalities.

"It was stupid of you to keep it," he continued making the chain disappear into his armour. The last piece of her childhood. Gone and she felt it as keenly as the void the Force had left inside of her. He was on his knees now, hands around her chest as he shifted her onto her side. Her head rolled over and she came to view with darkened walls.

Then he was gone from her field of vision and she finally saw the ceiling above her. Wherever they were it had high ceilings and from the darkness she could only tell it was a brownish colour? How late was it?

Lightning briefly illuminated the ceiling and the intricate pattern of a window panel was plastered on the ceiling in shades of green, blue and purple. She had seen them before. They were still on Teth. In one of its temples. Thunder crashed through the silence and she squeezed her eyes shut as her ears rang. So the thunderstorm was still raging and they hadn't left the planet yet. Hadn't there been the first raindrops when she got caught? He probably would have taken her to the nearest one. The one she had to several times with some childhood friends from town. They all had left. None remained. Now she was forced to leave. Not fair!

Really… crying like a child was going to help her _sooo_ much right now….

But she couldn't help it, tears were in her eyes and she could not lift her hands to wipe them away. The sedative must still be in her system. And she really did not know where Boba was. Everything was silent except the rain hitting the window panels outside.

Hang on…. She knew this temple. The crack in the ceiling she had seen briefly! Eyes wide now, tears completely forgotten now, her mind started racing. If she could crawl away, there was a niche somewhere she could hide in long enough to… To do what? Wait until he finds her again? She was bound. Her hands, no Force and… she tried to wiggle her toes, her feet as well. There was no way she could climb the steep path down to the valley and get to the town unscathed. It was a public path. Too obvious and she'd be crawling through mud and puddles. Easy to suffocate with the thunderstorms. It was hopeless.

The sound of armoured boots approaching echoed around her again. This time she was prepared for the hands when they touched her. Though, she was not prepared for them to go underneath her arm pits and lifting her upper body up. Her neck couldn't support her head still and it rolled back, making her stare right into Boba's chest plate. She could feel herself being moved, her legs scraping along the floor and a clinking of chains. Chains? She was lowered again, her head resting against the hard floor. There was a small wooden box to her left and some greyish light trickled in from above her. Was she below the window panel? Probably.

He shifted to her side and she felt her arms being lifted and the chains rattled again. Metal clinked on metal and something heavy and cold settled on her stomach and legs. So he had bound her something. What was going on? He didn't even spare her a glance when he was done and was as swiftly gone as he had re-entered her field of vision. The sound of boots hitting the floor retreated swiftly, leaving the echo as her only companion for a minute. With a deep breath, she rolled her head to the side, facing away from the window side. There was a survival heater not far away from her. At least they wouldn't freeze… A backpack leaned against a stone bench with a cloak hanging across it. It looked like green fabric.

She had to frown. What else was in the room? It was so dark outside of the light of the heater that she could not see. If she remembered correctly then the sleeping rooms were not too far away from here. Why had he not gone there? Where had he gone?

Slowly she rolled herself onto her side, her wrists suddenly straining against the metal around them. Had he seriously bound her so tightly? She tried to move her feet and… she couldn't. The chain was too short probably. Why? Why couldn't he just slip up for once?! Just this one time so she could flee and return to her life?

 _Stupid, stupid, stupid_! As if that ever worked! As if he wasn't the most notorious bounty hunter in the galaxy for nothing. She really should stop thinking of false hopes. Right now she could not escape. No Force, no food, no shelter. Nothing! She was as dead with him as she was alone out there.

With a sob she turned herself on her back again to stare at the ceiling. Why couldn't she have been born without the Force?

She could hear hurried boots on the ground. From the sound it was probably Boba. But she really couldn't be too sure. It wasn't as if it changed anything…

He was back over her. Though this time his helmet was back on. Her gut sank. There was trouble. Maybe? Probably if he saw the need to put his helmet on. She could feel the weight disappearing from her stomach, metal clinking as the chains were moved. Were they moving?

"What is going on?" She blurted out before she could bite her tongue.

No response. Frowning, she bit her tongue this time. No reaction. The tension on her feet vanished and almost immediately he had arms underneath her armpits again, yanking her up. Her head jerked up making her wince when the pain that had dulled flared up again. Arms were around her waist and she could feel herself being hoisted up without much effort. Her face was thrown over his shoulder and she could see the window panel now. The rain was still dense and she could see the occasional flashes in the distance. From what she heard in the cantina when she bothered going, the storms made it impossible to leave the planet's atmosphere. Something about the upper layer being too charged for any system to function properly. Where could they go?

An arm secure below her behind, she could feel them moving now. Tentatively she laid her cheek against the hard shell of his jetpack. The rocket that stuck out painfully close to her nose. Something clinked and three beeps made her shiver. A bomb? He was expecting trouble. Hopefully he won't blow off her face….

They were in a narrow corridor now. The light from the heating unit gone and she could not see anything in front of her. Silence weighed heavily on her ears, except the steady rhythm of his boots' echoes. If she remembered it correctly, they were going deeper into the temple now. The echoes grew deeper suddenly. Were they in the throne room now? It sounded like they were. Where were they going? To his ship?

She was shifted, her head slid off his jetpack and her nose dug into his cape. The rough cloth scratching at her skin. Her weight shifted, her legs being shifted making her upper body slide down. Now her face was against his shoulder, one of his arms underneath hers and another underneath her knees. He bent at the knees and she could feel the small tremours coming from the jetpack. They were propelled upwards. Instinctively she squeezed her eyes shut. He was going up to the roof and its sprawling system of beams connecting the pillars. The beams in her memory were big enough to accommodate two people standing shoulder to shoulder. Her stomach flew into her throat when Boba lowered them onto something which sounded like stone. Yep, definitely the beams. She was unceremoniously dropped, her shoulder bone digging painfully into the stone. A hiss stopped in her throat when she heard the echoes of boots. From down below and it sounded like more than one person coming.

Something clicked. A rifle? She could not see!

Then silence fell over them again, even she did not dare to make a noise. Why couldn't she have a quiet and calm life? Was this some joke that the Force was playing on her? If she could just roll off the edge, she'd finally be… Her stomach churned as she thought of the plunge. It would be her death. Though, it was a mercy now to die. Why couldn't she bring herself to roll off the edge? Something was stopping her. As if she deep down really didn't want to die. All she had to do was roll around and it would all be over. Her heart seized at the thought again. She couldn't do it. _Coward_ …

The echoes of the approaching boots got louder and she closed her eyes again. Not that it changed much in her perception. Maybe this was just a bad dream… She'd wake up in the morning on her first day off in weeks realizing she had fallen asleep on her couch with the holo-projector playing some early morning drama series. There'd the happy yells of children down on the street and just the general hustle of her town in the mornings.

Boba shifted near her and she got ripped from her wishful thinking. Her heart dropped into her gut and her nose suddenly felt stuffy. It was no dream. So stupid of her to even entertain such an idea. She was never that lucky.

Something heavy settled on her shoulders as she focused on Boba again. Tension in the air, thick enough to cut through it. The echo of the boots had slowed down slightly, but were still drawing closer. Blood could be heard rushing in her ears. He was going to shoot them. And they would never see it coming.

A flash of red flared up suddenly. Shooting sharply down, she almost thought it was her imagination playing tricks on her. A metallic thud, the echoes stopped. Everything was so dark and silent again. Her heart wanted to jump out of her ribcage, so hard it was beating she had to bite her lip. Hopefully no one heard her heart… _Oh stop it, no one can hear that_! Someone just died and all she could think of was her heartbeat? It wasn't as if she hadn't seen people dying on the surgery table… This was different!

Then the yells came, the cocking of blaster rifles and … she felt like she should feel something else. That damn collar. What she'd give to have her connection back.

Air whooshed past her suddenly, the sound of boots near her leaving the stone. Had he just left her? Trusting that she'd not throw herself off the beam? That was her chance!

And she still couldn't. She felt so sick even thinking off rolling over the edge. _Come on, coward_!

A burst of flames ripped her from her thoughts and she saw Boba hovering in the air near her, blasters aimed and after a moment's breath the fighting began. Blaster bolts flying everywhere, shouting increased and Boba flew down, disappearing from her view. The tiny illumination from his jetpack disappearing dousing her into darkness again. She tried to move her arms underneath her, the fingertips numb from the cool air. The cuffs around her wrist dug painfully into her flesh and she had to stop tugging. Had he secured her there? Without her noticing? To think she thought he didn't take any precaution after she had flung herself off a house to escape him. _Stupid_ …

Tears were running down her face now. Why her? Why in the Force her? Another yell and suddenly her ears split in pain from an explosion rocking the chamber and her teeth chattered from how the beam shook. More than one group? How high was her bounty? Though… given how many had died already, she'd rather not know.

A cold hand suddenly clamped over her mouth, her scream effectively cut off before it the breath had reached her throat. She yanked her arms harder trying to pull her body away from whoever was over her, silencing her.

"Altharya, calm down. It's Soren. Remember me?" She shivered involuntarily when a deep voice whispered into her ear, another hand appearing on her right shoulder. Soren? Her mind froze and the shivering stopped. Soren?! The one who had made her a doll when she had just arrived on Teth all those years ago? That Soren?

"Stay still, I will get you out of here," he continued hastily and she felt herself relax almost instantaneously. Freedom? Thank the Force!

The blaster shot made her flinch away violently but she finally… finally could move her arms. Arms were around her shoulders, the hand gone from her mouth. She could feel herself being lifted up, her legs feeling weak when she finally put her weight back onto them.

"How are we getting out of here?" she dared ask, as Soren shot the cuffs around her legs and arms.

"I have learnt some tricks," she could hear the smirk in his voice even though beneath them the sounds of battle only intensified with small explosions. His arm slid down to her waist, gripping her securely.

"Just hold on and we will be out before they notice," her arms slung around his torso holding onto her own hands. She felt how he lifted the other arm and something shot forward followed by a distant thunk and they were yanked off the beam. Her feet swung freely as they were in free fall in darkness. She squeezed her eyes shut, but her body fell in an arc now. A grappling gun. Huh…. They hit the ground soon after, her knees wobbling after the initial impact and she had to hold onto Soren before she let go.

The battle was behind them, blaster fire being readily exchanged between… she could not even tell who was against whom. Only Boba was really who she was able to focus on before she was tugged away. Into the winding corridors of the temple.

* * *

 **AN: Hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please leave a review. Follow and favourite if you liked it enough :P**


	3. Chapter 3

They had ducked into a bare room at one point, letting themselves catch their breaths. If the other bounty hunters had noticed she was gone, they could not hear it. According to her memories they were in the deepest bowel of the temple. How had he gotten up here so fast?

"Soren, thank you," she threw him a small smile which he answered readily.

"Don't sweat it. We just need to get out of here," he practically waved her off.

"How?" They couldn't just hide out here. Boba Fett and others will start tearing the temple apart once they find she was no longer there.

"I think you know how. We have gone this way so many times before," he teased. This was no time for teasing! They had to leave this place and go their separate ways again. Maybe she'd buy him a drink for getting her out of here, but she'd need to find another home… again. Best without any baggage from her old life. She cannot keep onto anything from her old life, not like before. Though… she had to swallow, how would she go about earning her keep? Her line of work brought in bounty hunters like a steady stream. With her face on a bounty request… she could never work in a clinic. She'd be useless. Utterly useless. A leech on a community. She felt sick.

"Down that mountain? Are you mad? They'd immediately see us!"

"They are probably still bashing their heads in. If we are fast enough we can slip into the jungle without them noticing," he continued laying down a plan she could only shake her head on.

"I don't think that will work. You know that we would have to sneak through the main hall just to get to the entrance," she countered while frowning. Where had he been for so long? Was he convoluting this temple with another place?

"Can you get that collar off," she felt stupid for not asking sooner, but… she just wanted it off now. To _feel_ again.

"Altharya, why do you have a Force suppression collar?" Soren asked instead not moving from his spot. She froze. Surely he'd know by now? Her eyes narrowed in suspicion. Why was he trying to get her to admit to her being Force-sensitive?

"How would I know?" she shrugged, cringing slightly at the lie, "I woke up with it on me after getting knocked out."

He winced in sympathy.

"Why do you ask?" There was a flicker on his face. His mouth had twisted slightly and the bridge of nose had a miniscule crease in it now. Something was up, her shoulders tensed slightly.

"I was wondering," he shrugged his face smooth again. She probably was imagining things now. Definitely what she was doing. Soren was her _friend_. At least her friend up until he had left with his parents to live somewhere else. Not that he told her back then where and what he would be doing.

"Well, can you please get it off? It is rather uncomfortable," she prodded further. _Please, please_ , just get it off.

"I don't know how to remove it," she added sheepishly, looking up at him from beneath her lashes. He sighed while walking over. Finally she got a good look at him. The last time she had seen him had been six years ago at the local spaceport. His nose wasn't as crooked then. _Broken nose_ … Nothing too unusual she supposed. _But the scar_... She knew she was staring when his hands finally settled on the collar to remove it. Red and purple around the edges, it stretched from his right temple down to the bridge of his nose. All jagged and it looked like it healed badly. What had happened? It was as if someone had attacked him with a vibrosword! How had he not lost his eye?!

"I guess my scar is obvious," he sounded nonchalant, but somehow… oh by the Force. She barely felt the collar come off. The void she had felt was suddenly filled again. Her ears were rushing and she felt herself buckle and fall to her knees as her senses were flooded with … images, a presence near her blinking steadily then… _pain_. She groaned. Her hand flew to where her heart was, an ache spreading from there. An arm around her shoulders brought her back, her vision swimming from the rush of images finally.

"Altharya?" He sounded unsure, almost… sad. She couldn't dwell on it.

"I am sorry. I am probably dehydrated," she spat out an excuse without thinking. His raised eyebrow pretty much told her he was not buying it. She could only hang her head in shame. Now she could no longer deny it. She had a connection to the Force.

"No," he said slowly withdrawing his arm leaving her cold and… alone. "But given what it is, we need to get going. Now."

She rolled her eyes while scrambling back on her feet. What had she said not minutes ago? That they had to get a move on.

"Why did you never tell me?" He suddenly asked. Was he seriously asking her why? After so many times he wished death to the Jedi when they had played together in the evenings?

"Why do you think?" She retorted looking out of the doorway to see if anyone was coming. Her senses in the Force were confused still and she couldn't reach out to sense people far away. The training had never been there.

"Al, don't you think I deserve an answer?" His voice sounded tense from behind her and the back of her mind flickered. Of all things, did they really have to discuss this now? Can't they just leave and talk about it in a safer location?

"Can't it wait?" She saw nothing outside. Maybe they could hide out somewhere in one of the more hidden niches down here. Like the times they used to play hide and seek.

"No, it cannot," she flinched at the steel in his voice. Why? Why now? Didn't he realise that Boba Fett was after her? Hadn't he said himself they needed to move?

"Soren, we cannot stay here!" She argued back squinting her eyes at him. Something like this wasn't important right now!

"Al, you answer right now or…." Was he threatening her? She instinctively took a step back and his face twisted in horror.

"I am sorry, Al. But… this is all so confusing. Suddenly there is a bounty on you," she drew a big breath. So that was how he was able to find her? What had he been up to since the last time she had seen him?

"Can I tell you after all of this?" She pleaded, her stomach knotting itself in fear. How long would the others battle each other up there? Soren sighed.

"Fine. You owe me big time," he spat and pushed past her down the corridor.

"Come," he waved for her to follow.

"Where?"

"Somewhere they will not look," she rolled her eyes at his back. Cryptic? Really? Just because they cannot dally? What was going on?

"Can you please be more specific?" She gritted out.

"Only if you stop lying," he rounded a corner briskly down another corridor. Were they… oh Force. They were going to the Rancor pit? All there was were bones!

"Soren?" Confused she caught up with him. She could not even get a grip on him with the Force. It was as if her senses were colliding with a durasteel wall that was his mind.

"You know you are lying my face and you _know_ that I know," he sounded hurt now. Almost like her friend from all those years back. She had to choke back a sob. What was she even thinking? He was her friend still. He _rescued_ her! Of course he would be still her friend if he did that. She was being silly.

"Soren, I am sorry," she tried and winced a bit at how her voice wavered.

"Sorry for what?" He pressed now. Her throat tightened at the aggressive undertone. _Was she_ sure _that was her friend_? No no, silly…

"I am sorry for not being able to tell you right now?" She explained. This… insistence of him to constantly slap this question into her face was unnerving her.

"It's alright. After this, all will be well," her stomach sank when he said that. Though why she wasn't sure of. Surely she should feel elated? Maybe she was feeling elated, just her body was messing up her reactions given they could be chased down right this very moment.

Dim grey light filtered into the Rancor pit when they entered. Her nose curled as the putrid smell of decayed flesh hit her nose. It smelled as badly as all those years ago.

"Are we hiding out here?" She asked. They could hide in the Rancor's cage. It was fairly hidden in the darkness after all and there was small door leading to a path up to the main hall.

"I had hoped to get us to the other side of the bounty hunters by using this detour," Soren scratched the back of his head. Clever… Then they'd just have to make their way down the long winded path into the jungle and go from there? She couldn't think of anything else.

"How did you know that I would be here?" She suddenly asked. He flinched slightly. That was weird?

"I saw a bounty out for you and I was close by so I thought I would help out a friend in need," he replied smoothly. No hesitation, no stuttering. So he was not lying. Her nerves calmed a bit and her stomach lost most of its nervous knots. She was safe now. Or as safe as she could be right now.

The ceiling shook and resounding boom made her hands fly to her ears to cover them.

"What are they doing up there?" she asked eyes wide. Hopefully they won't bring down the temple on top of them.

"What do you think?" Soren sounded irritated now "They are killing each other. Just so someone can claim the bounty on your head."

"It was not my idea that they kill each other!" she argued back, feeling sick now. Frowning she stared at his armored back. Armor? Since when was he wearing armor?

"Soren?" She stopped to draw a breath before continuing "What do you know?"

There was more to this.

"What do _you_ know?" He countered automatically, sounding almost absent mindedly. They moved towards the middle of the arena, stepping into the light from the fight above them. How many were there? All of them were here for her. For _her_. She did not feel the tears building up. When they spilled she could only curse herself for giving in. This was no time for crying. She could cry later, when she was _safe_!

"I only," she stopped talking briefly as Soren turned around to her, his face softening at her tears. But she continued, "know that they were suddenly after me. I ran and… got captured. The only reason why I can think of is my sensitivity."

The word "Force" had been on her tongue, but in the end she could not bring herself to say it. It would mean admitting what she was really. Why people were dying to capture her. Erana's charred corpse suddenly appeared in front of her inner eye. She was dead because of her. Oh Force… Bile was in her throat again, this time also pressing against the back of her nose.

"Al, the Empire wants you alive," Soren said softly as yellow light of a flame burst illuminated his face briefly. There were yells, but they were so muted she might as well could have imagined them.

"I heard," she answered quietly. Hopefully no one could hear them from down here. Impossible really, but was she really going to take that risk?

"Do you know _why_ they know you are Force sensitive," she winced when he said it out loud. Undeniable now. She wished she could wind back time. To… she really didn't know. Was it inevitable? Had she slipped up too many times? Only the real obvious reason was that her face and biodata had been in the Jedi temple. Apparently they weren't wiped?

"How should I know?" she bit back. All those questions, they were uncomfortable. Something was going on and she couldn't put her finger on it.

"I don't know? Why would Darth Vader of all people put a bounty out on your head. Alive!" She recoiled. Darth Vader? The one person her mentor had always flinched whenever he got mentioned in the cantina. Right hand man of the Emperor. According to most a merciless employer, but if the job was done well the rewards were astronomical. Only the best competed for the bounties placed by him the rumours implied.

"Darth Vader?" she whispered in horror. Oh no. Oh by the Force. Her throat twisted into several knots and her vision zoned out. Was she breathing? She could not tell! _Breathe_ … No air! Her chest tightened painfully, squeezing any air she had left out. If Vader was after her… no wonder Boba Fett had gone after her. What did he want with her? Wanted he to kill her himself? Why? The inquisitors were for that.

"Yes, Al. Don't you see. You will not be safe anywhere!" Soren sounded urgent now. Not safe anywhere? She had to swallow hard, as she finally drew a short breath that stabbed her lungs. He was right. There was no way that the bounty hunters would let up. What could she do?

"What should I do?" It seemed like she had to trust Soren. Not that it was hard. Well, it shouldn't be.

"Trust me, once we are out of here we can work out what you can do. But right now…" He looked up making her follow his lead. The fight above them had stilled? She could not hear any explosions, blaster fire nor could she see any fire. Did that mean only one was left standing? Snapping her eyes back into the direction she thought Soren would be, she felt his hand land on her shoulder.

He was tugging her towards the Rancor chamber now, their feet shuffling silently across the floor. She must not make a sound. Whoever was left standing would be now going after them.

The beast master chambers were bare, only a small light on a table in the middle of the room. Soren switched it on, dousing them in pale blue light.

"We can stay here for a while they try and find us," he muttered taking out a holo-device. She eyed the device. It was small, smaller than anything she had ever dealt with. The clinic was running on old technology, anything newer wouldn't reach them for several decades one of the nurses had told her on her first day. Where had he been for all those years?

"Shouldn't we keep moving?" She wondered out loud, her eyes glued to the buzzing light source. It didn't sit right with her to sit here. Like a pouch of credits sitting on a table in a cantina filled with thieves. This wouldn't end well.

"Trust me they will look in the main hall first. Especially Boba Fett," Soren reasoned while he pushed several buttons on his device. It whirred to life and he set it on the table near the light. A holographic map of the temple took shape and she stared in wonder. Where had he gotten that map from?

"How would you know that?" She was curious now. This Soren was more confident than the Soren she had said farewell to. But she really didn't think he'd flinch at her question. Her eyes narrowed on their own. Why would this question be uncomfortable for him?

"Just trust me," he muttered while he stared at the map intently.

"My ship is here," he pointed towards the small tower to the side of the temple. She knew what spot he was talking about. A small hangar out of view and easily missed if the person didn't know where to look.

"So like the old times?" She asked, hopeful now. Maybe… she could get a good head start and disappear. It was not the first time she had done it. She could do it again, with or without help. But that was on Soren to decide. He got a wistful look on his face when she said that.

"Aye, just like the old times," he turned off the map, his face gaining more shadows. He looked more sever now. Somehow… it made her uneasy. Silence fell over them, the air somehow seemed denser and breathing became more difficult.

"Do you think it is a good time to move?" She asked to break the tension. He looked up sharply, giving her an intense stare. Her body shrank away from it instinctively. What was up with him?

"Aye," he sighed, rubbing his face with his left hand. Tired. He was tired. The sooner they were out of here the better.

"But before we go," he piped up again. A groan left her lips before she could stop herself. It only earned her an annoyed side glance, but it didn't deter him. "You need to tell me why you never told me you were Force sensitive."

"Can't it wait? Why are you so insistent on this?!" She snapped back. Why did he need to know now? They could talk about it when they were far away from here and no bounty hunter behind them for a few clicks.

"I need to know, Al! We were friends for so long. Why couldn't you trust me?" He shot back, leaning over the table towards her. This wasn't good.

"You left when I finally decided you could know!" Tears were back, the familiar pressure against her eyes. Why couldn't they just move?

"Yes, I left. You could have told me before!"

"And what then? You would be gone, I didn't know if the knowledge would pose any danger to you or your parents!"

"All those years I thought you were some… former slave girl who got freed! No, you were a Jedi from the temple. You somehow survived Order 66," suddenly her chest constricted. Yes, she used to be a Jedi. Not really, her training was rudimentary at best. Her mentor didn't bother to train her further. If he even knew about her sensitivity. The Jedi who had dropped her off here hadn't said much to him.

"Yes, I survived by sheer luck," she said in a low tone now. This was ridiculous.

"So you admit it!" He pointed a finger at her now. She was tempted to bite on it. Then she had to shake her head. No thinking like that.

"I was never a Jedi," she blurted out.

"Yes you were."

"I was a Youngling! Barely any training in the Force! I was never one to begin with!" The first tear spilled and she angrily wiped at it. What surprised her when Soren started chuckling. Surprised she looked up and saw the familiar smirk.

"I just remembered how we bickered where to go to get our snacks from," he said suddenly. She frowned. Had he lost his mind? Yep, he has lost it.

"I remember," she answered cautiously. Then she frowned.

"You said Darth Vader wants me alive," Soren looked sad as soon as she said it, "do you know what he will do with me?"

"I will make sure you won't get anywhere near him," Soren promised while putting his right hand over his chest.

"What do you know though? You said you saw the bounty," she had to know. It burned in her mind now. What would Darth Vader want with a failed Youngling like her anyways? Soren cringed.

"I see he shielded you too well," he started.

"I can see that. Now tell me," she demanded.

"Sheesh, Al, don't rush," he threw his hands up at her glare.

"Guess I deserve it for insisting before. But Darth Vader has Inquisitors. He trains them. I guess he wanted a new Inquisitor. You were the candidate he picked I guess? I do not know any more," he looked to the side. A sign he was making a decision. Something heavy settled in her gut. An Inquisitor. She was a medic! No soldier! What did she know of killing?

"Let's just go," she said weakly, "and get out of this temple for good."

"Aye," Soren walked around to put a comforting hand on her shoulder. His armored gloves gave no comfort however, only cold running down her spine.

They walked in utter silence. The dark pressing down where his hand had been while she trailed behind him. Up and further up they went. Hopefully, she prayed now, they wouldn't run into Boba Fett. She had a feeling… no she _knew_ that Soren would die if they met.

The main hall was silent. A stark contrast to the chaos that had been there when Soren had freed her. She strained her ears for any signs of other bounty hunters or Boba Fett being nearby. Nothing. Only the light thudding of their boots. Good. Almost too good. She shook her head. No need to dwell on her chances right now. Wherever Boba or any surviving Bounty hunter was they were hopefully on the other side of the temple.

Outside the lighting was a dull grey, but it still made her squint her eyes until they got adjusted to the light. The storm had let up, so she had been out for the whole night. It was morning now then. At least that was what she thought. Give or take a few hours.

When they finally stepped through the stone arcs into the full open, she had to stop. Finally, she breathed a lungful of fresh air. Her mind calmed considerably. Her eyes were tempted to close so she could _feel_ everything around her again. No, she had to press on. Later.

She walked past Soren who had thrown her a quizzical look to what she was doing. Almost free, she could practically taste on the ozone in the air. The bridge was wet, but wide enough that she didn't need to worry about slipping. How often had they run across it when they could? She had almost forgotten.

"Altharya?" Soren suddenly asked behind her. He sounded resolute. Almost as if… he had made a decision. Frowning she turned around to her friend. He looked lost on that bridge. As if he didn't belong there. _Idiot, of course he belonged there_!

"What is it?" She cocked her head to the side. Her eyes trained on the man in front of her. So different from the boy she had last seen. A man… she realized now and she wanted to kick herself… wore a bounty hunter's armour. A professional. Of course! He said he knew about her distress because he saw the bounty. Who else would look at bounties other than a bounty hunter? She was such a moron! Just what had he become?

"This is not a temple," her frown deepened. This was not a temple? What? He had a pained expression on his face now when he opened his mouth again, "This is a monastery."

A monastery?

"Why does it matter?" She shrugged.

"You fled a temple."

"And? There is more than one temple in the entirety of this galaxy," he shook his head.

"Nevermind, it is just… how could I have missed it? Back then. You kept calling it a temple and to me it was all the same. Now it makes all sense. You thought this was like your previous home," he shrugged back at her.

She turned around to look at the tower where he said he had put his ship. So close. Maybe she had substituted one temple for another.

 _Turn around_!

Her head snapped back and she came face to face with Soren pointing a blaster in her face.

It all went still. Time could have halted for all she cared, her heart was beating in her throat and all breath had left her. She was drowning. He looked pained. His hands shook but his eyes had this determined glint. He was going to kill her?

"Soren?" Her voice was barely a whisper and it cracked towards the end.

"I am sorry, Al. I cannot let you become one of them!" His hand steadied. Why was he hesitating?

"But… we are getting out of here?" Why was this a problem? _Please please_ , by the Force put the blaster down. They were friends!

"Even if we did. Boba Fett will continue to hunt you. I _know_ him. I don't want you to suffer. I can give you a fast and painless death. Anything is better than being under Darth Vader," he was pleading with her. Why he didn't just shoot was beyond her.

All words had escaped her, her mouth glued shut as she stared down the blaster barrel. What was she to do? Beg for her life or plead for the quick death he promised her?

Soren was prepared to kill her… Kill a friend. She opened her mouth but nothing came out.

Screams filled her ears. Smoke stung her nose and eyes. The floor shook beneath her. She was 11 again, alone, scared and curled up in a nook in the Jedi temple. Soren was no longer in front of her but a Clone trooper aiming his rifle at her. Her knees were buckling and she could feel herself dropping, the palms of her hands scraping on the rough stone. The smoke was choking her now. He just stood there, the rifle still aimed at her face. Why was he not shooting? He had her at his mercy! Just shoot damnit!

Her face was against the stone now, the his boot on her cheek pressing mercilessly against her cheekbones. Pain erupted in her temples as she stared in Kine's dead eyes. Her small hands scraped against debris in panic trying to find purchase while the other had closed around her fellow Youngling's cold fingers.

"Altharya!" Who was yelling her name? It sounded like someone was screaming underwater. She shifted her eyes up to the trooper.

No Clone trooper. Soren. Soren's boot on her face.

He said he would grant her a quick death. This was not quick! More tears and snot ran down her face. She must look pathetic. But he promised. He had killed Kine! No that was impossible… _He killed her_! No! Get it together. _HE KILLED HER_!

A lightsaber suddenly sprang through Soren's chest. It was red. It had been blue! She remembered it clearly! It had been blue. Red? Why red? Instead of the Jedi who had gathered her in his arms and soothed her tears back then, it was Boba Fett. Where was the lightsaber? There was only a blaster in his hands.

She had lost her mind. Soren had his eyes ripped wide open and his mouth. Was he screaming or was that her? She could not tell. Then everything blurred together in swirl of green and black, more screaming. Her ears screeched at the noise and she could only bury her nose into the unyielding stone. The cold seeping into her skin, but it didn't dispel the images of Kine's body. Or the bodies as the Jedi who had rescued her had carried her to safety into the bowels of Coruscant until they could leave. So many dead….

Her body was shaking, cold fingers were grasping around her heart, her lungs, her spine. Hands were on her face now, armored hands. Like the Jedi's hands was. Blinking she felt her head being moved up. There he was, the Jedi. Smiling soothingly down at her. Her hand reached out for him and his soft cloak, the one she had buried her face into so many years ago. Instead of cloth she met hard metal armor. Frowning she squinted her eyes at the blurry face of the Jedi in front of her. Fingers were now on her forehead, her mind jumping to the sensation. How often had Master Renstan done this when she had started screaming in the night? It was all a foggy memory now. The arm that wound itself underneath her shoulders felt familiar though. Her body was lifted into a sitting position and she felt herself pressing her face into a hard and cold armoured chest plate. Her fingers gripped cloth and she held onto it with all her might. The body in front of her froze. _Master Renstan, they couldn't stay here_! The hands on her back shifted, lower until it was around her knees while the one on her head wound itself underneath her shoulders. Feeling herself being lifted, she burrowed her face upwards until her nose was nestled where the neck met the shoulder.

They were moving. The steady rhythm of being jostled started to slowly dispel the fog around her eyes.

Green cloth? The cloth underneath her fingers didn't feel like the right texture either. It smelled differently too. More metallic, somehow she could also smell smoke clinging to it. Slowly her mind stopped spinning and she heard the way the man who carried her walked. She had heard the pattern before…

Boba Fett. Of course. He had grabbed her during, her cheeks burned with shame, her episode. She had thought that he was Master Renstan. A groan escaped her and Boba stopped moving. She felt his helmet rotate against the top of her head.

"Done?" His modulated voice echoed in her head. Done? Right now? Yes. Ever? No. Weakly, she nodded. Then she froze. She should not obey him! But she also had no strength left to oppose him or run. _Oh Soren_ … She was sorry. Deep in her gut she knew Soren had not survived.

She was roughly put down making her stagger her first few steps while he yanked her through the main hall by her right forearm. Numbly she stared ahead. In a few days' time she'd be delivered to Darth Vader and she'd never be able to come back here. There was nothing here for her anymore, only Soren's bones.

May the Force preserve them all.

* * *

 **An: I would like to know your thoughts of what has happened so far. Review, pm me, constructive criticism is welcome and wanted. My friend on AO3 ShaeTiann edited this chapter so massive thanks to her. Until the next chapter!**


	4. Chapter 4

Boba kept a punishing pace making her stumble more than once. Every time she faltered she was hauled up and then forward again. The joint in her right shoulder ached from the tugging and yanking. Her tears had dried already, the salty crusts they had left behind was keenly felt in the cold draft in the corridor. Where were they even? She knew they had already gone through the main hall of the tem… monastery.

She stumbled once more when her knees gave in. This time she couldn't get her knees to straighten again when Boba tugged mercilessly again, her knees hitting the floor and the palm of her left hand hit the ground to prevent her head from hitting it too. An annoyed huff was heard.

"Girl, you are making this harder on yourself than necessary," Boba commented drily. However, he didn't yank her up mercilessly this time. _Small mercies_. Gasping for a breath, she looked up to him. What she had expected to see she did not know. As if a helmet could display expressions. Her senses were too fuddled to even attempt to reach out with them.

This time he kneeled in front of her, his visor in line with her eyes. She had to swallow in fear. Then she remembered how she had practically smashed her nose into his neck back on the bridge. If her cheeks could catch fire it'd be an inferno right now.

"Please," she choked out, "I need to breathe."

There was silence while they just stared at each other. His hands twitched.

"We cannot stay here. More bounty hunters are on their way," he stated simply. She frowned. Why should she care?

"And I should care because? I am wanted alive!" She spat, refusing to move still.

"Not all of them will deliver you alive," she swore she could practically hear the smug smirk in his voice.

"A kinder fate than what your employer has in store for me," she shot back immediately. Boba cocked his head to the side as if contemplating something.

"So you know," was all he stated.

"Yes."

"Well that explains why you threw yourself off that building to get away," Boba retorted, then as fast as lightning his hands were around her forearms squeezing them. Her muscles strained against the pressure through her clothes. No, she threw herself off because of Erana.

"But you are with me now, and you will stay alive," a shiver ran down her at the promise. There was no way he'd let her out of his sight now. She bit her tongue to swallow down a response. It would not serve her at all if she antagonized him more. Frankly it was over. She had tried to escape him twice now. There was no way of escaping. All was lost. Hanging her head in defeat she felt herself being pulled up, her knees finally obeying her again while they ached from the impact previously.

More would be coming he said. More killing. More having to watch bodies crumble to the ground.

She was tired. So tired.

This time she was pulled in front of Boba, her feet nearly tripping over themselves in haste to not stumble again.

"Keep moving," Boba said behind her, his voice vibrating against the back of her skull. Then she was pushed forward, her feet going through the motion of walking automatically. The lump in her throat intensified when she was forced around another corner. Soren. Gone because of her. If she hadn't… What could she have done? She shouldn't have panicked. Soren shouldn't have pointed a blaster at her face! No, she had wanted to die! Still, Soren was… had been her friend! Was she so sure that she wanted to die? Her eyes widened.

She didn't want to die. Not now. Not before either. _Coward! Coward_! Co… no she was not… she was one.

They stilled abruptly. Her upper body lurched forward when his hands didn't permit her to move any further. Instinctively she opened her mouth to ask what was going on now, when Boba's arm slung around her waist, his other hand clamped on her mouth. Then she was roughly pulled into one of the dark rooms in the corridor. She was forced onto her knees again, Boba following her down as the weight of his chest armor pressed her into the wall. Her hands were instinctively gripping at the edges of his armor trying to keep herself more upright than just sliding down against the wall. Her knees started aching again as they were pushing against Boba's leg. Too close! She could practically smell him again.

"No peep from you," he threatened in a low voice. His helmet digging into her cheek as the other was crushed against the stone of the wall next to her. So she shut her mouth and listened. Waited. Until echoes of boots could be heard. Her heart was suddenly in her throat again. Everything inside of her felt as if she had stuck her hand into an electric generator. She squeezed her eyes shut while the drumming of footsteps grew closer and closer. Boba's chest plate rose and fell against her cheek and it was comforting in a sense. Odd. It was so odd that anything about him would be comforting. He killed this Erana, he killed Soren. _He killed Soren because Soren was about to kill you_ … Shut up! By the Force, it was true though? Soren was killed because Boba wanted her alive. Twisted. Everything was twisted.

The air grew more charged the closer the group of people got. Her eyes flew open on their own accord. Just as the group of people came into view. A scream died in her throat when she saw the armour and insignias. Rebels. The rebellion was here?! Who else was going to turn up?!

"Are you sure you saw them going here?" A gruff female voice suddenly said close to her ears. She nearly jumped, if she wasn't so firmly pinned to the wall. Boba did that on purpose. So she wouldn't give their position away. Clever.

"Aye, the gossip in town wasn't exactly quiet on that matter," her town knew? Surely they'd… No they wouldn't. She was just a medic apprentice. The doctor couldn't leave the clinic and the others couldn't be bothered. _Stop thinking you are of any worth to anybody_.

"They can't have gotten far. Keep moving," the female ordered and the group disappeared from view. But to her it felt like she had been punched in the gut. Why she didn't know. Surely the rebellion would help her? She did not make a single noise while Boba had her pinned so securely against the wall. Until he let up. She sank onto her behind when he shifted away from her, his shoulders tense and a hand on his blaster. His other hand remained on her forearm though. As if he would let go she'd run again. Why couldn't she have run into a stupid Bounty Hunter? One who didn't know what he was doing?

Then she was face to face with his helmet again, making her nearly jump in surprise.

"Don't think they are here to help you," he said in a low tone making her frown, "they are here to kill you."

That was a tough one to swallow. Hang on. Why should she believe him? He could just as well be lying so she would follow him. Just pretend for now. So she nodded and the grip on her forearm lessened a bit. Her muscles finally were able to relax a bit. Right he was lying. She somehow had to get to them without Boba realizing it until it was too late. Though, the getting away part was easier said than done. Biting her tongue she kept looking at him. Why would they want her dead to begin with?

"Come," and he was up again tugging her up and she followed him as fast as she could. Hopefully she could get away soon. Her gut twisted now. A warning? Were her senses so fuddled now that escaping Boba Fett was not good? How messed up was she at the moment?

They were moving away from the rebels, completely opposite direction. Frowning she tried to remember where they were. Narrow corridors, a window to their right. The jungle could be seen down below. No sign of the town. So they were on the East side of the temple. Moving away from the main hall too. Did he even know the layout of the temple? He stopped out of nowhere and she bumped into his shoulder. Damn, her poor nose. If he was bothered by it he did not even twitch. He stood there stock still staring down the corridor to their left. They were at a junction at the moment if her memory served right. Left would lead back to the main and right would lead to more rooms and landing platforms. Landing platforms? Her spine straightened, was he planning on leaving? Right, he was going to collect on the bounty. She should run. The rebels would surely help her. Boba was just lying. Right? He didn't seem like he'd have reason to lie? No no, he is screwing with her head.

He killed Soren! Her stomach sank. No she did. _It was her fault Soren was dead_. The realization slammed into her lungs all of the sudden. Her fault? Yes. No? Yes! Coward! She had to shake her head to chase off the thoughts. Boba ignored her.

The air tensed around her, constricting around her throat, crushing it. Involuntarily she took a step back as far as the iron grip on her arm allowed it.

Boba whirled around, making her jump and she was forcefully dragged to the right corridor. Whatever was coming from the other direction was bad. For both of them.

Swallowing she matched Boba's pace as they rounded another corner. She could feel the draft from outside when they were finally caught. Her insides grew cold and the hair on her neck stood up. This wasn't good.

"Halt!" The female from before? This was her chance! They knew she was held against her will right?

"I was wondering when you Rebels would catch up," Boba remarked flatly, his blaster now aimed at the approaching group. Blasters were cocked. She counted at least seven people opposite them.

"We caught you, nothing else matters," the female retorted smugly.

"Who said you'd get us?" Boba chuckled. Uncertainty flooded her senses and she had to resist the urge to gag. Was this what it was like to stand in front of Boba ready to fight? Silence filled as the group in front of them hesitated and she could feel the smirk on Boba's face from underneath his helmet.

She was suddenly pushed backwards, landing on her behind. Ouch. What was… She barely could blink as the corridor in front of her was engulfed in flames. No screams this time. Wide eyed she saw Boba coming out of a squat. The rocket on the top of his backpack missing now. Had he just blown them up? Numbly she observed him turning around to her again and she swallowed. How many had died already by his hand just so he could get her bounty? Bile was up in her throat again and this time she could not keep it down. Keeling over she spat out what little she had had in her stomach still. By the Force, she was just supposed to be a medic! To help people survive and not be the cause of their deaths! More bile burned its way up and lurched through her mouth onto the floor. The foul smell deadening her nose.

"There will be more," Boba's boots were now in her field of vision. Unmoving like him in the face of all this death. How could he be so untouched? She did not care if more were coming. Slapping her hand on her mouth she wiped away the bile clinging on its corners. Craning her neck to look at him she saw him staring down at her. If he was disgusted or apathetic she could not tell. His presence was confusing. Her senses bounced off of him as if his mind was surrounded by a solid wall. He crouched down again. She already knew what he was going to do. Her arms twitching at the anticipated yanking that would happen. What she needed right now was water, her throat burned as if she had swallowed sand.

He had killed one of her only chances to escape! Hang on… He said there would be more! Her mind was turning when she was roughly yanked up, the lack of water setting in. They were moving away from where they had stood, back the way they had originally come from. Do not look back, if she did she'd vomit again and they wouldn't… She wanted them to catch them though! Why would her gut tell her not to trust the rebels? Her senses were confused. That was why. Stupid memories. Why couldn't they stay dead!

More stumbling, more merciless yanking her along. Her heart kept jumping and dropping in her chest and it hurt. It hurt so much. Everything hurt, her arm ached, her shoulders strained and all she wanted was sleep. Sleep and never wake up.

Shouts reached their ears now and he suddenly forced her through a hole. Surprised she looked up to see the molten edges of the hole. She knew this one! It had been here ever since she had arrived on Teth. They were on a landing platform now. Why were they here?

The sliding of rope disrupted the silence and her stomach sank to her knees when white uniformed soldiers lowered themselves down in front of them and immediately readied their blasters.

There were so many.

Shit.

They were screwed.

No. He was screwed. Not her.

But why was her gut twisting so badly and her senses shrilling in the back of her mind?

Blaster rifles were cocked aiming at them. What?

"Fire!" Someone shouted and she was thrown on the ground. By what she had no clue. If it had been Boba or herself. It had happened too fast and she threw her hands over her ears as blaster bolts whizzed above her.

"Shoot him and then the girl!" Oh no. They were trying to kill her too?! Why her?! If she wasn't already lying on the floor her jaw would have dropped in shock. This wasn't fair.

Hot white rage set in, invading her vision as she lifted her head up from the ground. Boba was standing above her now, both legs next to her elbows. This was all wrong! She was supposed to be rescued by the Rebels! Not be protected by… _him_! She froze.

If she crawled out from underneath him they'd shoot her too. Isn't this what she wanted? To die? _Do it_. But her limbs didn't move. _Do it_! No! _Coward_ … Shut up.

She didn't want to die. Fuck.

More bolts flew through the air. She turned her head to the side. Crates. Cover? Frantically she tried to find a grip on the stone with her hands. Slowly she pushed herself out behind Boba who had both his blasters out now shooting at the rebels who returned the fire.

As fast as her aching knees would let her, she crawled over.

"She is getting away," someone cried and she jerked her hand away just in time as a blaster bolt hit where her pinky had been just a second ago. Then she was finally behind the crate, as it got pelted with more bolts. That was too close! She held her pinky finger closely to her chest. If she hadn't pulled it away, it would have been gone. Her body was shaking again and she just wanted to cry. Why was the most feared Bounty hunter in the galaxy protecting her while the guys who should be more sympathetic are trying to kill her! All she wanted was to be a medic!

Yells disrupted her thoughts and the air sizzled around her as she heard a flamethrower being activated. Curling tightly in on herself, she tried to block out the screams. Erana's body appeared in front of her eyes. She had no bile left to spew out so she squeezed her eyes shut. The image didn't go away.

The back of her mind started itching. Urging to look. No. That would be insane! She was not suicidal and catch a bolt to the brain. No. Do it. No. This time her stomach flipped and now she knew the Force was warning her again. Foreboding more likely.

Slowly she turned on her side and got on her knees to peek over the top of the crate. A yell made her flinch, ducking her head lower, hands over her head. That hadn't sounded like Boba. Why she felt relieved she really did not want to think about right now.

 _Look up_. Groaning she got back on her knees and peeked over the crate. Bad idea, a blaster bolt whizzed past her temple. The heat making her right eye water and she swore she could smell singed hair. A rebel near her turned his body towards her, aiming for her head and she froze up. No, no flashbacks! Please!

Out of the corner of her eyes she saw Boba shifting his left hand and a red bolt streaked past her. The rebel in front of her did not see it coming. A pity. It was a clean shot through the head. He was dead before his body hit the ground. The blaster clattered to the floor and skidded across towards her crate, hitting the corner of it. Rage flooded her senses. She had to take a deep breath to remind herself that it was not her rage. Someone else's.

A weapon! One she did not know how to use. But a weapon! Dropping down again, as more blaster bolts flew past where her head had been moments ago.

She just had to get it. Yeah, how was she going to get it without getting a blaster bolt right in the middle of her forehead? Hesitating now, she bit her lower lip. Her chest suddenly hurt as if something punched through her heart. Force, she really needed to work on her mental shields again. Someone else died again? Boba was no longer standing where she remembered. Further back now, keeping his body moving, avoiding blaster bolts as if it was child's play. It looked so easy!

Come on, she just had to grab that blaster and help… no. She would not help Boba! _A bit too late for that now_! Shit….

She risked a quick peek around the crate's edge to her side. The blaster was lying on the opposite edge. Frowning she glared at the weapon. She'd have to stretch out her arm completely to reach it. If her arm wasn't blown off in the process that was. Shaking she slowly lowered herself to the ground. Hopefully she'd have a larger range to get it. On the ground now, she snaked her arm around the crate and her fingers started crawling their way over.

Her fingertips met cool metal. She had it! Emboldened she shifted her body more forward to get that extra inch in. Her outer fingers closed around the cylindrical barrel and she could weep. Finally she was no longer defenseless!

She firmly closed her hand around and drew it towards her. Safe again behind the crate she turned the blaster in her hand. How did one fire these things? Why did no one ever teach her? Or why hadn't she done so herself? Doesn't matter! Shoot!

Had she the blaster pointing the right way? Looked like it, there was a trigger and the longer part was pointing away from her. On her knees again, she hesitated. Could she actually do it though? Point and aim at another being? She was a medic for Force's sake!

Don't think, just do! Squeezing her eyes shut, she propped herself up, aimed at the first blurry white shape in front of her and… her finger didn't pull through. Her hand shook now, her heart was in her throat as finally… her finger pulled the trigger. The recoil caught her by surprise, bending her wrist backwards. Ouch.

Had she actually hit someone? There had been no yell. She looked again only to see two rebels looking straight back at her now. This time she pulled the trigger again and the bolt hit the nearest one straight in the chest, sending him flying into his comrade.

She felt sick. No, they would have killed her if she hadn't. Still, she killed someone. Wide-eyed she stared at the body. Didn't see how the face of the other rebel contorted in fury and charged at her. The fast movement made her jerk her head up to see a man charging at her with his blaster brandished. Frozen she could only look as the man leapt into the air to reach her.

Before she could scramble backwards, another blaster bolt impacted the charging rebel's chest and with a cry the man crumbled to the ground in front of her. Dead. Numbly she turned her head to see Boba shift his left blaster away to return the fire of the four remaining rebels.

He had saved her. Again.

She saw it before it happened. And did nothing.

Boba suddenly groaned and went to his knees, one hand on his stomach. He had gotten a blaster bolt to the stomach. Frantically she saw one of the rebels aiming for his head now as the other two swiveled around to focus on him.

She had to do something. Anything. A scream built in her throat and pressure built up in her forehead.

Her left hand was in front of her the next moment, a rush of power flowing from her chest to her fingertips. The rebel who had aimed at Boba's head was flung backwards. The scream made her blood run cold. Had she just Force pushed someone? Had she done that?

Dumbfounded she stared at how the body rolled past the platform's edge and disappeared. Silence fell over them as the shooting ceased for a moment. Boba and the others staring at the edge where the body had just been. This had happened then? She was not… She had killed with the Force. That was two now.

Boba was the first to recover. On his knees now he aimed his right blaster and the rebel nearest to her had no chance. He was dead before she could blink. A headshot. Clean.

Scrambling backwards she realized she had let go of her own blaster. Damn. Frantically looking around for it, she missed the roaring of ship engines. Only when it got so loud that she had to look, she saw a large ship hovering at the platform's opening. This was not a ship from the Rebellion. How she knew she had no idea. Open mouthed she stared as the ship's guns rotated towards them. Were they seriously going to…?

Arms were around her waist suddenly and she was flung over the platform as well. This time she screamed. The platform above her retreated fast, Boba falling above her his arms outstretched as if to catch her. Her own arm was outstretched and she stretched them as far as she could to grasp his hands.

A loud explosion sent a huge flame ball outwards above them. Her heart seized at the size. Any second later and they would have been burned to death! Strands of her hair had gotten loose from her braid and the brown strands blocked her vision now. Please, please catch her!

Why wasn't he using his jetpack? Their fingers nearly touched now and she desperately made a grasp only to barely graze his. Come on. He'd surely save her now for going all this trouble to kill the rebels?

She did not see the debris falling.

A sharp pain on her forehead made her cry out and her head jerked back, her spine digging painfully into the base of her skull. She could feel blood forming already and droplets flew up towards Boba. Her vision started to blur and she blinked to get rid of the haze. By the Force she hoped the cut wasn't too deep.

She heard the jetpack being activated before she saw it. Finally.

Their hands clasped around each other and her lower body jerked down, making her shoulder joint ache in protest by the sudden weight. He had her! Was she safe?

Then his arms were around her shoulders and her face smacked into his shoulder plate. Well, at least as safe as she could be with him. Her nose hurt with the impact and she knew her blood would be on it. Hopefully he had medical supplies. A stomach and head wound needed to be treated as soon as possible. Wincing she tried shift her head so she could see how bad it was. Air was pushing up still keeping her head right where it was. Why were they still falling down? Were they?

They slowed down after an eternity. Her heart fell down to her stomach when Boba pulled them out from the fall to a stop, hovering in the air for a brief moment. Finally she could lift her head to stare right into his visor. All she could see was her own reflection. Blood was running down her eyebrows now, making them itch. Though, she could sense his eyes on her face and she knew he was in pain. Even if she couldn't sense it.

"I can have a look at your stomach," she spoke up before she could bite her tongue. Her cheeks flamed up again. What was she thinking?! There was no reaction.

"We will see," he suddenly said while adjusting her in his grip. This time he had only one arm around her ribs. Then slowly they descended down towards the trees of the dense jungle.

Is that where his ship was?

Sure enough, it was hidden between three large trees that were densely intertwined enough to block out any metallic reflections. They landed before the entrance hutch. She was firmly set down, at least not roughly. Small mercies.

"Get in," Boba commanded roughly as the hutch opened and she had to swallow. Of course, how could she forget? She was a prisoner. Kriff. There was no choice. All this death and she was still in his hands. Maybe the Force wanted her to be with Darth Vader.

 _Coward_.

Tentatively she stepped inside, darkness swallowing her up until the hutch closed behind them. Lights came on and she saw how narrow the corridor was they were standing in. Surely there'd be enough space for medical attention? Blood dripped onto her eyelashes now.

Cold metal met the back of her head and she froze, spine straightening. What? Was that his blaster? Why? Fear gripped her insides. Slowly she lifted both of her hands.

"No funny moves," he growled behind her. "Keep your hands where I can see them."

She was pushed forward now. Stumbling she moved into small room with a console board with two chairs behind it. Was this the cockpit? Looking up she saw the trees through the window. Was this the last time she'd see Teth's jungles like this? Yep. She should really stop thinking about stupid questions.

With a yelp she was shoved making her flail around for balance and a collar snapped around her neck again. No! No and whatever had been tickling her mind for the last precious few hours vanished again. No! Why?! Frantically she dug through her mind again just to feel its presence.

 _Stupid, it won't be there_! Her hands were now on her collar tugging on it. Could she rip it off? No. At least it wasn't as jarring the first time. Taking a deep breath she looked back to look at Boba. She had saved him with the Force! Why? The blaster was still aimed at her head, steady and sure.

"No. Funny. Moves," he repeated. She wasn't that stupid!

"Why?" She asked weakly nonetheless. His response was to cock his head to the side.

"You can use the Force. The collar stays on," he dismissed her casually and she was pushed without remorse into one of the chairs. Metal clicked and her right hand was now chained to the armrest. Her dominant hand. He had observed her. Defeated she hung her head. So this was it. Why had the Force made her help him back then? Why was she to serve Darth Vader?

"Hold still," something cold latched onto her forehead and she jerked her head away. She stared at Boba whose fingers were retreating from her forehead where tingles started to spread. Tingles? Cold? A bacta patch? What? Small mercies, remember? Her mouth was glued shut though, she could not bring herself to say thank you. What would it even do for her? Nothing.

With a groan Boba lowered himself into the chair next to her and she saw blood seeping through the cloth around his middle. Not good. Frowning she tried to think of what she had read and learned from the doctor regarding stomach wounds. If it was penetrating, blunt… Definitely penetrating. Organs, blood vessels damaged? No clue. She'd need a scanner for that. Not something she'd get her hands on anytime soon. He wouldn't let her anywhere near him from what she had seen. Helpless and useless.

Boba set his helmet on the console and for the first time she saw his face. She did not know what she had expected. But not the face she saw now. He looked like… she wanted to shake her head, but was too stunned to do so. A clone? The outer layers of his chest armor came off now and his undershirt was soaked at this point. Too much blood. He'd need a transfusion under any other circumstances. Not to mention the monitoring for any hematoma ruptures.

She should not care. Really should not. If he died she was free again. But what kind of medic was she if she did not offer her knowledge? The Jedi… no she was no Jedi. _Wasn't she though_? No. They were all dead and she never was one. She was a medic. Her duty was to aid and ease suffering. Who was she to forsake that? Even for him. He was a human just like her.

But that kind of injury could not be treated by slapping a bacta patch on it! She tried not to wince at how little the patch actually covered and how ragged his breathing was at this point. Pain? Definitely. It took a while until his breathing became normal again.

"If you will not let me have a look, then at least get medical attention once you drop me off," she had tried to sound cold, distant. Tried. Her voice betrayed how afraid she actually was. Of being dropped off at Darth Vader. His head snapped to stare at her properly. Brown ones bored into her grey ones. She had to swallow. What was he thinking? He frowned now.

"I know what to do," he snapped back as if talking to a small child. She shrunk into the seat. This was Boba Fett, who was she to tell him what to do? He probably knew more than her in that regard! Coward!

Before she could bite her own tongue she blurted out: "I am a medic."

His eyebrows were raised now. A look of utter disbelief on his face.

"You give me advice how to treat an injury? Me? The one who is taking you to collect a bounty?" He sounded almost like he had heard a good joke.

"A medic…" she started before she was interrupted, this time his tone was cold and sharp.

"You are a fool," this time she bit her tongue before she could retort. She'd get nowhere with him. _Difficult patients_ ….

He was putting his armor back on while she ground her jaw while trying not to be too distracted by the bacta patch on her forehead. Clasps snapped shut and she tried not to think of what would happen once they lifted off.

* * *

 **AN: Hope you enjoyed this one! Taylong, I am happy you loved it!**

 **Also a point of potential confusion: Altharya has had some training with rifles. However in stress situations where you handle something that is not a rifle but a pistol your brain can go haywire. Hence why she is being a bit of an idiot with it.**

 **As always, reviews, follows and favourites are appreciated and I am really happy I got several new followers and a favourite from the last chapter! Tells me that the story is being enjoyed :D**


	5. Chapter 5

It took them a while before they lifted off. By then she was watching with half open eyes as Boba worked on the console. Might as well catch some sleep, if she could not get out of this. It didn't come though, the constant moving of his arms and beeping noises kept her from fully dozing off. If he didn't watch himself though, that bacta patch will fall off. Not that she didn't want it to fall off. Idiot, if he bleeds out now how would she get out? No Force, cuffed to the chair, she'd die of dehydration. Or if she did more bounty hunters would be after her too.

What really worried her was Boba's ragged breathing. The blood loss setting in. Hopefully that patch will stop the worst of the bleeding. It should at least. Boba winced when he made a sharp movement to grasp the controls. She frowned. This was not good. So not good. How had he survived up until now? Hematoma ruptures setting in already? Surgery would be needed. If he'd let her touch him that was.

She kept her mouth shut. The irritation was radiating from every single pore from that man and she did not need the Force to see that. She definitely did not want to be on the receiving end of a highly irritated bounty hunter. Even if she was wanted alive.

At least the bacta had healed her head wound. Though, she'd be surprised if it didn't scar

The ship came alive, the engines humming steadily underneath her. She nearly jumped. So that was it? They were leaving already? The walls around them started spinning and she had to bite back a shriek. A rotating cockpit? She looked out of the window and saw that they were lifting off while Boba strapped himself in.

As they broke through the trees, she could not help but wonder at the sight in front of her. The town she had grown up in had been on a cliff. Sometimes she had spent evenings watching the sunset go down over the jungle underneath her. But this? This was a so new and familiar all at once. It was beautiful. If it wasn't the last sight she'd ever see. Sighing she looked over to Boba again. His hands were steady and his breathing calm. Some improvement, but she didn't trust it. It could any number of reasons. Adrenalin for one.

The monastery came into her field of vision now. Was that the bridge where Soren died? Squinting she tried to see. Nothing. Not even a speck of colour. They were rising too fast. She closed her eyes briefly. What had she honestly expected? To have a final farewell of sorts?

A screen on the console beeped, her eyes snapping to it immediately. What was it showing? She looked to Boba. His lips were pinched and he was frowning deeply. Trouble. Damn. What kind of trouble? Outside of the window she saw how another ship…. It was the same ship that had fired on them back on that platform! That meant they'd try and finally kill them, right? She clenched the armrest tightly. An air battle. Great! Not!

They swerved to the left, away from the approaching ship. Her waist dug painfully into the armrest and she clung to it with the one arm that wasn't chained to the other armrest. This was going to be painful. That much she could already tell. Was she strapped in?

No. But she was fighting against the centripetal force holding where she currently was at the moment and was not winning. She really needed to get stronger. Well… too late now. That should have happened before!

The ship was gone from her view, but given how frequent the console in front of her was beeping now it was growing closer. _Please, Boba, get us out of this safely_!

Were they flying in a circle? There was no change in direction that she could feel, still being pressed painfully hard into the armrest. She looked over to Boba. Sweat was running from his temples now, the frown had deepened. His hands clutched the controls tightly as he held them in one direction. Were they being circled? She had no clue what was going on and why. If she had only paid attention when the kind engineer had answered Soren's enquiries!

The ship shook suddenly, making her stomach drop. More beeping started to drill into her ears and she had to prevent herself from flinging her arms up to cover them.

"Kriff," a muttered curse erupted next to her. What was wrong?! More jolting and she nearly fell off the seat. Thank the Force that didn't happen. Her stomach clenched. Boba Fett was the best around, wasn't he? They were safe? Right?! Her hands fumbled for the seat straps, shaking while the buckle slid into place. How did she know this was going to be rough? The ship lurched and she felt her weight being pressed against the straps. She'd have been flung around the cockpit if she hadn't done that. Wide eyed she stared out of the window, the tail end of the other ship vanishing in the right corner while Boba jerked the controls around again. This time she was pressed hard into the back of her seat and her stomach lurched up when he turned the ship around.

She stared at the other ship head on and green and red bolts flew past each other. Her eye were squeezed shut tightly again. Nothing to see! Slowly she peeked again. The other ship was getting closer. Too close! Was the madman trying to ram them? Her mouth was open now. To scream? No sound had come out. Then they were past it, turning again. Her left hand was clasped over her mouth now as the same happened again. This time she saw smoke trailing from the other ship, just behind one of its wings. Good or bad? If she only knew!

Another barrage headed their way, some dissipating in front of them. Shields? Though this time she saw the flickering of an energy field in front of the other ship. Was that their shield? Quickly she glanced over to Boba. A small smug smirk had snuck on his face as he pressed the fire button. She didn't need to look back out to know that the other ship would be gone any moment. All she could see was Boba's expression. Somehow she could not decide what it was. Self-defense or murder. The lines were blurred and she sorely wished they weren't. It'd make hating him easier.

The resulting explosion rocked their cockpit, while Boba pressed several new buttons while shifting the control again. They shifted into a straight position again, when he pushed down a throttle and they accelerated towards the atmosphere's edge.

They broke atmosphere with no difficulty. There hadn't been a lot of jerking around? Boba hadn't seemed to be nervous about it. Should mean it was good? Almost as if he was relieved to be off-planet too. That stomach wound still made her insides itch. It was bad enough that he just slapped a bacta patch on it. That patch wasn't big enough. Bacta didn't regenerate blood cells fast enough to counteract any blood loss. Hopefully he had surgery tools around. If worst came to be, she'd have to do it the old way. Intervene surgically and that won't be pretty.

He winced again, a hand holding the injured spot, eyebrows furrowed in pain. Bad. This was bad. It shouldn't be bad…yet! She jerked in her seat instinctively, trying to… what exactly? See his wound? That was behind his armour still? _Stupid_.

"I can.."

"Stuff it," he growled and she snapped her mouth shut immediately. _Difficult patients, remember_? Let them come to you, the doctor had said. Guess she had to wait. Even if it was difficult.

She looked out of the window again. Everything was black except the occasional twinkling of far stars. Leaning her head back she stared ahead into the nothingness. Could she just vanish into it? The galaxy was a big place. Surely there was a space or a nook for her to crawl into and vanish again? Though, how would she shake off any bounty hunter coming after her? Running away was foolish at this point. She released a shaky breath. Was she going to greet death screaming and begging or like it was nothing? After all, wasn't it 'There is no death, only the Force'?

The console near her started beeping again. Just like when the ship from before had come after them. Again? She nearly groaned. Nearly. The death glare that Boba threw the console made her bite her lips to suppress it. More trouble was coming. His hands flew over to buttons, controls, she had to flinch at how his hands were subtly shaking. Hers weren't any different.

How she had not seen the ships at first was beyond her. It had looked like tiny stars growing bigger but now….Black as the surrounding universe and how she wished she could unsee it. Star fighters. All steering towards them. Boba had abandoned the controls he had been punching commands in and jerked the controls again. They swerved away. Out of the corner she saw red bolts racing past them. Why was everyone shooting at them?!

"Kriffin' imps," he muttered under his breath and she had to bite down a gasp.

Bounty hunters, the Rebels and now the Imperials! The galaxy had gone mad! Wasn't Boba doing a job for them? She was confused. All she really needed to do was bash her head somewhere until everything just fell into its logical order in her head.

"Imperials?" Her voice squeaked in the midst of the maddening beeping. Boba did not react. Not even a flinch, as he avoided more fire coming from the fighters on their tail.

She braced herself. There had been so many which had materialized in front of them. Was escape even possible at this point? They were still facing away from the planet, it already gone from her vision. More red bolts zipped past the outer edges of the window. She found herself praying to the Force that none of them hit. Dying from an exploding starship was not how she wanted to die.

Her mouth fell open when the stars suddenly became long lines and her entire body was suddenly pressed hard into the seat. The ship shook slightly before the force of being pushed back lessened and she could slump again. They were in hyperspace. Gutsy move. A hiss next to her made her turn her eyes back to Boba.

"So you see who wants you dead?" He snapped at her through gritted teeth. Oh was this all her fault now?! Narrowing her eyes at the infuriating bounty hunter in front of her, she wished she had the Force right now to whack something over his head. Hard. Painfully. So he'd pass out until they got out of hyperspace. Stupid force suppression collar.

"I thought the Empire wanted me alive?" She shrieked back, a snarl forming on her face.

"Ohhh. Darth Vader wants you alive," he replied re-adjusting his sitting position so his injured side did not touch the armrest.

"Then why were there Imperials trying to kill us?" She demanded, trying to control her breathing. When was the last time she had been that angry?

"How would I know?" He shrugged, checking a console to his right. This arrogant… smug… son of a bitch!

So they stewed in silence. For hours. Until it was time to drop off hyperspace. They were… nowhere? No planets that she could see. Only the vast blackness of space.

"Where are we?" she asked, curiosity taking over now.

"Somewhere they cannot track us down," was his only answer as his activated a device on the console. A holo-communicator? Was he going to contact Darth Vader?

It took several beeps before Darth Vader answered. Her heart clenched while her stomach dropped to her knees as his image pixelated in front of them.

"Boba Fett," a mechanical rasp stated, more demanded.

"Got your bounty," Boba answered firmly while making a hand gesture pointing to her.

Darth Vader's helmet rotated and a shiver ran down her spine. This Sith was probably parsecs away but it felt like he was already in front of her. The chill, the way his hologram dominated the window screen. How would she even survive his mere presence?

"I can see."

"Confirm drop off," Boba continued, tone cold. A professional.

"My master has discovered my plans to make her my apprentice," Darth Vader drawled, making her slap a hand over her mouth. Apprentice? Her? "The drop off needs to wait."

"You know my rates for laying low with a bounty," Boba stated in tone that meant there was no negotiating the price.

"The amount will be transferred to your account," Darth Vader answered flatly, cutting the transmission leaving them in silence drifting in space. She would not be made an inquisitor. An apprentice? His master, the emperor, did not want that? Her life was a mess.

"Lay low?" She croaked. What did that even mean? Boba raised his eyebrows at her. At least he indulged her with an answer.

"It means you and me get to hide somewhere for a few months until the situation has cooled down."

A few months? That should give her plenty of time to run again.

"Where?" She automatically asked.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" He bit back sarcastically immediately. She rolled her eyes.

"So you are not telling," she remarked. Of course he wouldn't. Why would he?

"What made you think that?" He retorted and she shut her mouth. No use arguing with him. She'd only be met with snark. He was working on a console, typing in something. Their new destination probably. Heaving a sigh she slumped back onto the seat.

The jump into hyperspace wasn't as jolting as last time, but the tremours the ship made underneath her were worrying. Boba's face was creased as well, focusing on something. Then he snapped his attention back to her. She immediately averted her eyes. The rustling of the cloth between his armour plates could be heard as he stood up and walked towards her.

She did flinch when he unclasped the cuff chaining her to the arm rest. Was she to move somewhere else? Looking up she saw him indicating for her to stand up. Her eyes though immediately locked onto the bloody patch on his side. At least it wasn't _growing_ anymore. That didn't mean much. It could mean the bacta patch had only stopped the blood loss and only sealed the superficial site. Sometimes she wished people would stop slapping bacta patches onto everything. Bowel infections were not fun to operate on. Standing up she saw where he wanted her to go. One of the bunk beds. Upper or lower?

"Which one?"

"Upper."

Sighing she stepped over and heaved herself onto it. Then Boba was leaning all across her as the cuff clicked into place somewhere near the wall. He was gone as quickly as he had pressed his weight on top of her. Great. Chained to a bunk bed for how long? Days? Hopefully she could get some leg stretches in before they'd leave the ship. Blood clots were a bitch especially if they got broken up in the lung.

With a grunt Boba lowered himself on the bottom bunk.

"I suggest you sleep, it has been a long day," Boba commented while he rustled with the sheets down below. Was he serious? Sleep? Was he seriously thinking of sleeping? Him? He needed to treat his stomach wound.

"Are you going to _finally_ treat that wound?" She asked. The rustling stopped.

"You are not letting up, are you?" He sounded almost bewildered. Or she could be reading too much into his tone.

"I am a medic," she said. It was true though. A medic did not discriminate who their patients were. Or they shouldn't at least. He sighed.

"How many times do I need to call you naïve?"

"Take it as you want. But I will not forsake my duties as a medic," she bit out. How can anyone ask a medic not to treat them? That was just… wrong?

She could hear clasps clicking. A box? Hopefully a med-kit. If she could just see what was in it, she might know what she could potentially work with? Stupid, he'd never let her anywhere near it. How would he know she wouldn't try and stab him with a scalpel? With a huff she settled her head against the small pillow. More rustling from down below and metallic clasps were coming undone. So he was getting rid of the armour. All she could hope for was that he knew how to contain the worst of it.

Why was she even having any concern as to what happened to him? She pinched the bridge of her nose. Ridiculous thoughts. It was true though? She did not truly want him dead. Yep, she was screwed.

Sleep claimed her soon after, all the while listening to the sound of Boba trying to patch himself up again.

Hours later she woke up to the low humming of the engines. Soft breathing down below told her Boba was asleep still. Tiredly she wiped her eyes, awkwardly with her left as it was chained a bit above her head. Her stomach growled and she desperately needed water. She'd have to wait. A groan made her flinch involuntarily. He was still in pain?

She tried to turn towards the edge of the bunk bed. Not possible. Damn. Right… pain, stomach wound, a bacta patch. Yeah. He needed surgery. To think he called her a fool. The medic! Stretching out her other fingers brushed past two plastic containers. Had he…? He had deposited food and water on her bunk. When had that happened? Was she so fast asleep that she had noticed nothing? As she finally soothed her sore throat with cool water, she tried to listen for anything more worrying from Boba's bunk. Only the soft, _steady_ breathing. Steady for now. Sighing she bit into the ration bar and grimaced. It was as dry and tasted like paper as she remembered. Bah.

So she laid there. Waiting for Boba to wake or to change condition. Whatever would happen first. Chewing on her lip, she looked over to the consoles. If she just knew how to use them! Then leaving him to die... What was she even thinking? For fuck's sake, if she abandoned someone in need now, her stomach turned at the thought and she had to swallow hard for nothing to come back up, what would she be? A murderer? Wasn't she one already though? She had killed two people! Self-defense! Was that even valid anymore? She could have chosen not to shoot or… why had the Force made her do it? Why had the Force decided Boba needed to live?

He was going to deliver her to Darth Vader and killed more people than her. She _killed_ people _because_ of him. What had she become? It was self-defense like when he saved her from the rebels and… she squeezed her eyes shut as a sharp pain tugged in her chest, Soren. She defended him once compared to how many times he has saved her life? Was that fair? Towards whom? Her or him? To leave him to die? Was she any better than him if she let him die and crashed somewhere because she did not know how to pilot a ship? Were those deaths on Teth for nothing then? Didn't they all die so she could live?

Why couldn't it be a cut and dry decision? Yes or no. There wasn't supposed to be any grey area. Either he died or survived. Either way she was going to either die or be apprenticed by Darth Vader. What was worse she could not tell anymore.

The only thing she could do was wait.

And she waited, slept, ate, drank and was escorted to relieve herself. During this time when Boba was up, she could only worry at his state. Neither better nor worse. Still pale, but now there was a limp in his step now.

Every time she offered. "I can help you."

His answer was always, "Stuff it."

They were both on their bunk beds again, her listening to his now ragged breathing. It made her itchy all over that moment. Something wasn't right with it. Gut instinct? She couldn't quite place it even when it started to develop into a slight pounding underneath her temples. Great. For the fourth time in like an hour, she had to pinch the bridge of her nose.

Men. Were. Ridiculous. Or bounty hunters were.

He choked suddenly and she jerked against her cuffs. Not good. So not good. Choking, he had trouble breathing. Straining her shoulder joint she shifted her back towards the edge of the bunk.

Something clanked against the ceiling and she looked up, only to be smacked right on top of the bridge of her nose. Her eyes snapped shut on instinct. Ow. What? It had felt like a metal object. Metal... object? She grabbed it and and opened an eye to look at it. A key? Bewildered she held in front of her eyes. A key. Was he delirious?

Scratch that. He was delirious!

Her hand with the key flew to the cuff, jamming it into the keyhole. Come on. Open! With a soft click, the cuff came undone and she withdrew her hand from it. Her legs were already off the bunk, when she realized what she was doing.

For Force's sake. Was she seriously rehashing this again? Panicking was not going to help her now.

Slowly she slid off, rubbing her left wrist while turning around to assess the emergency. Boba was passed out, one hand over his stomach where the wound was. She'd have to move it out of the way. Where was this medkit?

Hang on. Was she considering to actually help him? He killed Soren! Soren had been about to kill her! Didn't that count as _saving_ her? He did not deserve any of her mercy! She squeezed her eyes shut when her heart seized painfully. Should she really judge who should get mercy?

He was a sentient, feeling person! She _had_ to help!

Her feet froze in their spot as she spotted the small box tucked in the corner of his bunk. Think again. There was someone in need of her probably on death's doorstep and she was doing _nothing_. Had she sunk so low that she'd forsake her principles?

He did kidnap her. Killed her friend. Killed anyone who tried to kill her… Well this was going nowhere. After all he did to protect her would she now turn her back on him? He did it only because of the bounty. Still! It did not change the fact he saved her from death more than once. If she repaid him… Was there anything to repay though? He kidnapped her so he was the one who had to repay her. Right? It all felt so wrong.

Her back straightened as the thought jumped to the forefront of her mind. He gave her the choice. Leave him to die and fend for herself. Or. Help him and lay low with him for who knew how long. Was this what she thought this might be?

No she was overthinking this. There was no way he'd offer her a chance to slip away after this much trouble. Even for a chance to live.

Who was she to decide on life and death?

A medic. They could. And she was one. Even if not certified yet. Duty dictated that she'd treat him. Should she? If he died, she'd be alone in this ship with no idea how to navigate it. She'd be as good as dead with him if he did.

Since when was she trembling? This should not be a hard choice!

 _Help him_! Who was she if she kicked everything she stood for to the gutter and turned the cold shoulder? No better than any of them who had come after her.

What was she to do?

Oh Force. She had known all along what needed to be done.

And so she did.

* * *

 **AN: Hey! Thanks for the reviews and follows! Hope you do enjoy this one, especially with the moral dilemma Altharya is grappling with. As always, please leave some feedback or just that you enjoyed/didn't enjoy it.**


	6. Chapter 6

Everything was quiet around her as she made her decision. Her hands had formed fists, as if she was still was fighting.

There was only one decision. Only one and she would not regret it. Lifting her chin she took the steps towards Boba's bunk. He was passed out. From what though? The blood loss? Has an infection set in? Though, the bacta patch should have prevented something like that setting in.

Now she stood right next to him, her fingers hovering hesitantly in the air. He was not in his armour, but rather a tunic. She would have to undress him. Oh for fuck's sake, this was no time to be shy! Where was that medkit?

It was jammed between his leg and the wall of the bunk. Leaning over him she retrieved it and put just at the edge of the bed. She opened it and was greeted with a mess.

Syringes? Check.

Needle and scalpel? Check.

Sanitation wipes? Check.

Bactapatches? No... That made her frown. He used up his last bacta patch on his stomach. This was going to complicate things further. Hopefully the bacta on his stomach hadn't been completely used up. Her eyebrows drew into a frown on their own. If it had been used up she could use the cloth medium as a gauze still if she cleaned it. Even if it hadn't, she'd still need to clean the bacta of any infection points that had been potentially contaminated it. There was a roll of bandages. She had most of what she'd need. Though, she'd have no scanners to completely check him.

How was she even supposed to do her work? Kneeling on the floor would mean she would be too low to operate and standing meant she'd have to bend over. She _could_ just sit on his legs though. It'd be uncomfortable, but her angle to work with would be ideal. A sigh escaped her. Of course. Only she'd get into a situation like this.

So she swung her right leg over his and settled her knees next to his hips. The back of her neck touched the bottom of her bunk. Stuffing her half-loosened braid into the neck of her shirt, so no strands of hair would disrupt her line of sight. First she had to wipe her hands.

She took out a sanitation wipe from the small package, using it to clean her hands in preparation. Hmm, there were enough. Thank the Force.

Right, she'd just throw it to the ground. It'd have to wait until later. She untied the belt keeping his tunic closed and pushed the fabric gently to the side.

Oh Force. This was bad. The bacta patch hadn't been enough. Chewing her bottom lip she regarded the yellow pus seeping from the edges of the patch. Infected. Damn. She'd have to cut it and squeeze that out. Slowly, she pulled at one of the edges and it pulled off easily. Too loose. The sight of his abdomen made her suck in a deep breath. The flesh around the wound was purple and still bleeding in some places and some cuts had seemed to fill with pus.

She had her work cut out for her, literally. But first… was that bacta patch still useable? If yes, she'd have to wash it. There should be a vial of cleaning solution. Drawing the med kit box to her again, she pushed aside the roll of bandages to look at the vials neatly arranged at the bottom of it. Some were empty, but there five were still full. Anti-bacterial? Yes and ohhh! A vial of bacta cleaning and replenishing solution. If he had internal injuries… She was not equipped for it, the only thing she could do was treat him and get him to a properly set up medical facility.

Hopefully he did not have any. Or if he did, there would a doctor at hand who was not dodgy. She was not sure what she could do with just a scalpel as a weapon. Concentrate for Force's sake!

Sanitise the site. She wiped down the damaged side of his stomach and prodded a pocket of pus that had closed under the bacta treatment. What a waste. She'd have to open that and slap the remaining bacta on top of it again. _Amateurs_ …

Scalpel sanitised? Yes. Carefully she set it on the largest infected site.

It took her hours. Squeezing the pus out of the wounds, cleansing the inflammation sites and stitching it all together again. Almost like a normal day at the clinic. Almost. If it wasn't for the fact she had still that awful collar on her. Maybe she could try and get it off once she was done? Destroy it too? No, focus.

His face still looked too pale for her liking. Blood loss and the infection. He'd be low on white blood cells to combat it all. Frowning she tried to think what she could do. Giving him some of her blood? Unless they had the same blood type and she could only stab her veins only so many times with a syringe. No. He'd have to regenerate them on his own. Though… did he have a transfusion bag of his blood stored somewhere? She should have looked closer at the med kit. They usually had a cooling compartment to store blood bags. If he had the infusion lines then she could try….

Well that would need to wait. She'd need to clean the bacta patch and see if anything of it is useable still. Then bandage him and hope he had a blood transfusion. Surely a bounty hunter would have something like that as a back-up?

Boba's left leg twitched. Shit. Her right hand flew up to the bottom of her bunk to steady her weight. Was he waking up? His eyelids fluttered and she chewed on her lip nervously. Would he startle to see her like this? Though, he was still so pale. Fever? Still fluttering. He was trying to wake up.

Hesitantly she lifted her left hand to his forehead. It was wet from cold sweat, but the skin beneath was… not boiling but warmer than normal. Not good. She leaned over to watch his closed eyes more. Were those the eye movements during the dreaming phase or him battling to open his eyes? Cold cloth to lower the temperature? So much more piling up on all the things she needed to do…

He groaned, his brows furrowed as if in pain. She had no idea what to do other than gently stroke his forehead. Maybe it would soothe him a bit? Her thumb brushed the top of his right eyebrow when his eyes fluttered completely open. The brown colour looked dull and glazed over. Did he even see her? If she just had a torch to shine into his pupils to see their reaction to light. Unfortunately she didn't have one.

She froze when his eyes focused though on her face. Oh no. Did he recognize her? Her heart clenched nervously. If he jostled too much the stitches would get loose and she was not looking forward to redoing them. So she stared back while slowly rubbing circles across his brow. Maybe it'd lull him into sleep again. He'd need it before they'd come out of hyperspace.

Maybe if she used her other hand? She had seen young mothers do it with their newborns. They made circular motions on the forehead and the babies usually always fell asleep. Not breaking eye contact, she lowered her right hand, gently placed it on the other side of his head and did the same circular motions on his brows as her other. He looked confused now and his lips opened slightly. But only a croak came out.

Should she say something? Normally she should. But what do you say to your captor who you are trying to patch up? No training had ever prepared her for that. So her mouth stayed glued shut and she watched as his eyes bored into hers for an answer. One she couldn't give him. Not yet.

Tentatively she made the circular motion she had seen so many times before. Please please, go back to sleep. They kept staring at each other until his eyelids started fluttering again. Was it working? She smiled slightly at him. He'd be fine. At least she thought so.

His body went lax after his eyes had closed again.

Phew. That was close. Releasing a breath she had not realized she had been holding, she looked at the bacta patch that was lying next to his hip. Right. She had to clean it. Then bandage him and not think about how vulnerable he looked.

She had made the right decision to treat him. Any second thoughts had… dissipated after she truly looked him in the eyes. _Remember_...

She was a mess. There was no other way to describe what her life had become. As if burned she snatched her hands away from his forehead. Any more contact and she'd forget what he had _done_.

Her hands shook as she cleaned the bacta patch and infused it with the replenishing solution. Do not cry. It was just her duty to do so. Any feelings of care would go as soon as he was back on his feet. Usually. This time she was… Oh she did not know. The bacta was replenishing still. It would take a few moments before she could reapply it anyway. She pinched the bridge of her nose. Hard. Why was she so confused? This should be straight forward. Clear cut lines.

The bacta patch had not completely replenished when she reapplied it. But it was the best she could get right now. Slowly she pressed it on top of her stitches and made sure there were no pockets of air trapped between it and the skin.

That should prevent any infections like before again. Now she just needed to bandage him up to keep the patch from moving potentially.

It was a bit more difficult to do so than she thought. He was heavier than he seemed and she struggled to roll him over a few time or to squeeze the roll from underneath him.

But she got it done. And she'd rather not have to do that again.

Sinking down in the chair she had sat in when they had left Teth's atmosphere she blew a stray strand out of her face. Her back hurt from the uncomfortable position she had worked in. She stretched her legs out while watching Boba's chest rise and fall steadily. From what she had heard so far, it was steady and not concerning yet. Though he was not quite over it.

Her eyes flew open. Shit. She forgot to look if he had any blood reserves. Rubbing her eyes she groaned at her mistake. Of all things she forgot to do the obvious. Stumbling back to his bunk she made a grab for the kit and pushed the vials aside. A small compartment was tucked towards the bottom corner. That should be enough for maybe two bags? Cocking her head to the side so she could lean over, she opened it.

There was one small one. She had to frown. It wouldn't be enough. That was for sure. But at this point she had to make do with what she was given. Any additional blood would help him. Lifting the bag to place it on his stomach, she touched the bottom of the compartment. Infusion lines could easily be overlooked with how transparent they were occasionally. Why some manufacturers made them in different colours escaped her. Not that she cared. As long as it worked.

Her fingertips pushed against plastic. Found it! Where was the needle to it though? She couldn't really attach it to the syringes…. Argh. Where was it?

There! Still wrapped up in its plastic wrapper. Good. Unwrapping it she attached the needle to the infusion line. No air bubbles from what she could see. Good so far.

Now… she would have to secure the blood transfusion somewhere to make the artificial gravity do the work for her. How as she going to do that? Use the bandage tapes or just leave it on his stomach?

It was no use, she would have to worry about it after she had set it all up. A sigh escaped her. She wrestled his right arm out of the tunic sleeves and positioned it elbow down on the sheets. The sight of it made her suck in a breath. Scars were littered across the muscle. Some fainter than the others, but Force… what had he gone through?

Tapping the vein in the crease of his elbow, she inserted the needle with the infusion line attached to it. Blood flowed into his arm and she ripped of a bandage tape to secure the line and needle to his arm. In case he moved.

Now all she could do was wait. Wait and worry. Worry? He'd be fine. At least she hoped so. She sunk her forehead to the sheet near his right hand. Why was she concerned about his well-being? Remember, he kidnapped her. He will deliver her to Vader once they came out of hiding. Still…

A sob had clawed its way to her throat and she choked trying to keep it in. She would not cry now. After all the shit she had gone through, had been _dragged_ through… now she would cry? Her shoulders were shaking now and she curled her hands into fists next to her head.

The sob tore from her throat and echoed in the cockpit. Why couldn't she just… make up her damn mind? She had treated him, possibly saved his life. It was _done_. Second-guessing herself will not undo everything she had done. Pressure built in her eyes. No point in preventing the tears now. They were already flowing down her face. The sheets would be soaked.

She should not care. She should not care! Not care at all what happens to him. So why did the Force back then tell her to be with him. Even save him! Nothing made sense anymore.

More sobs broke the silence and she wiped at her eyes in frustration.

What would Master Renstan say? What would the Doctor say? What would… She had to stop thinking. Her head was spinning and she kept sobbing next to an unconscious Boba.

It took her a while to calm down enough to stumble to one of the chairs so she could keep an eye on Boba. If his condition got worse or better, who knew? But she would start what she finished. Right? Could she? Of course. She started, she might as well finish it. Not that it influenced the outcome. Death awaited her at the end of the line.

Her back ached as she leaned against the chair. Maybe she should lie on the bunk bed? No, otherwise she'd fall asleep and miss any changes in his condition. But then… if she fell asleep on the chair she would miss it too. She had to wince at the thought of how cramped her back would be if she slept in it.

So she heaved herself on top of the bunk and shifted on her stomach. The blanket was thin, but she did not care as her eyes fell closed and she slept deeply.

No dreams. Nothing.

She woke up hours later, her eyes blinking wearily at the dim light from the hyperspace loop. How long had she slept? Her muscles strained and she had to stretch to get a few kinks out of her back. Ow.

Her eyes flew wide open. Boba! Fuck. What was his condition? As fast as she could she shifted her body to the edge and looked down. All she could see was his edge. Did she really have to go down?

"You are fool," his voice was hoarse but she still jumped a bit when she heard him talk. Hang on. He called her a fool. Again?

"Why do you keep calling me a fool?" She asked while frowning. That made no sense to her at all.

"You treated me," His voice had grown steadier now, his tone cut through the cockpit making her tremble.

"Aye," she retorted, "Should I not have?"

Silence. Then a groan.

"Why?"

That threw her off. Not that he wasn't in his right to know, just what could she say?

"I am a medic," she explained tiredly rubbing a hand over her face now. It was the only good explanation she could give him. Stony silence was her answer. She could feel his eyes boring into the back of her neck through the bottom of her bunk. Probably wondering if she was insane.

"You killed two men. Do not give me that load of shit."

"I told you why. I am a…"

"That is not the reason."

Oh this stupid man… It was the entire reason! Maybe not the whole truth, but it definitely was the core to what she did.

"It is," she insisted firmly now. He sighed at her response.

"You will never survive Darth Vader," his tone was harsh and she winced. What else was new though? She knew she was going to die. Whether with him or with Darth Vader. It would not matter in the end.

"I was not planning on it," she answered viciously. Had she caught him off-guard? It seemed so by the silence that now hung over them like stones pressing down on her chest.

"Why prolong the suffering then? Why did you treat me when you knew I'd deliver you still to him? You could have just been done if I died," Why did he insist on beating the point to death?

"I told you already. I will not stoop to your level!"

"And what level will that be?" He remarked drily and her mouth fell open.

"I am no murderer!"

"So are you," his response was immediate and tears were pressing against the back of her eyes again. So she was one? If another murderer told her she was one? Did that mean she was on? Could she even give any credit to what he was saying? Her eyes narrowed. Mind games… Bastard.

"I am…"

"Cut it. You are. No matter what you say. Medic or not. You killed two people. That makes you by definition a killer," his tone left no room to argue and she had to press her fingers to the corner of her eyes to prevent her tears from spilling.

How could he be so cold?

"I saved you," she argued weakly. He snorted. He _actually_ snorted! What? Blinking in confusion she almost forgot about the tears.

"You only made their deaths happen sooner. But saving me? No. You only saved me by treating me. Not by throwing someone off a platform," he bit out and rustling could be heard. Was he seriously moving around already? Hopefully the bandage she had made held together. If he re-opened his wounds, she might not be as inclined to help him again. _See, he was right_ … Argh!

"But…" she rolled onto her side to get off the bunk to get down from the bunk. Her body froze though as she saw Boba already staring at her when she had rolled around. How could an injured person be that quiet? She just kept staring at him. At least his face was not as pale as before.

"You killed someone. Does not matter why or how, you did. Learn to live with it," he stated, throwing her a hard glare. She shrank back from him.

"So I shouldn't have treated you?" She asked timidly.

"You tell me," he bared his teeth to her flashing his teeth. Was he toying with her? Yes he was. Just why?

"Why?" His eyebrows creased briefly at her question, before they smoothed out again.

"Why what?"

"Why are you insisting I shouldn't have treated you?" She shot back and saw the right corner of his mouth quirk up.

"Am I?"

"Yes!" Then when he raised an eyebrow at her outburst, she added, "No?"

His face grew really serious then. Gone was the smirk, everything was set in stone and she felt a shiver going down her spine. Why did he look so much like a predator and why did she feel like trapped prey?

"Whatever you are planning, knock it out of her head now. You are not escaping," he scoffed down on her. Arrogant piece of…

"I was not," she fired back. If he could not get into his head that she did it without any _ulterior_ motives then the better.

"Don't waste your breath lying," he interrupted her sharply, "I am not buying it."

She had to swallow. Wasting her breath. Right. Fine, she could keep her mouth shut and let him believe that he was right. When he definitely was not. Or was he? After all, hadn't she thought briefly he would let her go if she did?

Technically he was right, at the same time he was not.

How could she have been so stupid? The two people she… she swallowed hard, she had killed. They had been about to kill either her or Boba. Self-defense, right? Did self-defense make her murderer? No. Maybe? She was still a medic, nothing could change that. He was trying to rile her up. For what reason? Staring at the ceiling above, she yawned. She was too drained for this. Whatever his reason was, she would not fall for it.

Might as well hold her tongue. There was no use to keep arguing. All it would do was exhausting them and he needed his rest. Sometimes she hated having to be considerate to some people. Especially when they didn't deserve it!

So she released a big breath through her nose and kept her mouth shut. Glowering at Boba who threw her a vicious smirk.

"We will be out of hyperspace in a few hours," he informed her causally withdrawing from her eyesight. What was… clasps could be heard snapping shut suddenly. Oh. He was getting dressed. Huffing she turned on her back to stare at the ceiling again. Crossing her arms over her chest she wished she could burn a hole into the ceiling. Anything to annoy him. She winced. Such thoughts were childish and… she was past that stage. She was no longer a child!

They dropped out of Hyperspace two hours later. Reluctantly she rolled off the bunk and buckled into the seat next to Boba. He gave her a hard stare which made her roll her eyes. She had no weapons, nothing. Her only choice was to not make any trouble. Whatever his problem was now.

Atmospheric entry and the descent was… rocky. Why she didn't know. All she knew was that Boba's lips had pinched together when the first jolt had rocked the ship. She had gripped the armrests tightly and hoped. Hoped hard that this was something minor. If anything flight related was minor…

But it had been alright in the end. Thankfully and they docked at a spaceport in a … town? City? It looked like it was bursting with life when she had caught a glimpse of it through the window. Definitely was larger than the den she had grown up in on Teth. How many people would there be? Would it be easy to lose herself among all these people? There was some really large buildings, she squinted her eyes to count the levels. Six or seven? She couldn't tell and smaller ones were strewn around the few tall ones in the middle.

So that was where they were supposed to hide out for a while? Somehow she had imagined something more… secluded? Less life? Why would Boba choose something where so many people would see them and probably know about her bounty? Who he was? Wouldn't the Rebels and the Imperials know where she'd be then?

Her thoughts got interrupted when the holo-communicator on the console beeped three times until a holo-projection flickered to life in front of them again.

"Orbital control of Drog II, state your business," an official, she guessed, drawled slowly. Drog II? Where was that? But… at least she knew the planet they were on now. But how was she to proceed from here? She had no clue. Zero clue.

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 **AN: I am really sorry for the delay. Life slapped me and my beta ShaeTiann (AO3) in the face, hence the delays.**

 **Also I am soooo happy about the reviews I got on the last chapter. Warms my heart that people are reading it :D**

 **Thanks to JediOtaku who had a read through as well to check for inconsistencies.**

 **As always, I would be absolutely delighted about reviews, any follows, favourites etc.**

 **The next chapter is practically done, however I do ask for patience as I am not sure when I can get it out yet.**


	7. Chapter 7

**AN: Just a forewarning. This is unbetaed. My beta had a lot of real life stuff happening to them in the last couple of weeks so I will let them get back on track for now. Hope you enjoy.**

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Landing and securing the ship went rather quickly. From one moment to another they were hovering over the city and the next they landed in a secured hangar. Air control had sat up straighter as soon as Boba's name was mentioned. Was he that infamous? What was she thinking…? Of course he was. Even _she_ had heard of him. It had been horrifying how the guy's eyes had widened had the haste in which he had granted landing authorization. She did not want to know what he had done to make landing authorities stand straighter than an Imperial officer. Cringing she shook the thought away. Pondering on such things will not change her situation in the slightest. Right now she needed to concentrate on how she'd escape. Preferably without any trace.

Given that she was with Boba on a planet she did not know anything about… she might as well walk away blindfolded. To say she was fucked did not even begin to describe her situation adequately.

Now would they stay on the ship or would they go somewhere else to live?

"Get up," Boba commanded roughly to answer her question. This time she did not flinch when his blaster was cocked somewhere near her head. _What a surprise_ … It had gotten really old by now. Sighing she stood up from the seat. Might as well comply for now. Boba had been jumpier than usual ever since he had woken up from her treatment. What had been so wrong about her treating him? She had done the right decision. Definitely no doubt on… was she sure? Even _he_ said that she was a fool for doing so. But she was not him nor should she care what had been done.

It was _done_. Done and over with. Best to just move on. Like when the doctor could not save someone and they died during surgery. Her first one had been devastating until he had brought her back to reality. What was done is done. All she could do was move forward.

Just how was she to move forward with Boba on her heels? Literally!

If he quit being so jumpy, she could at least relax a bit too! She was not going to bolt. Yet. But not now. Way too tired, her muscles cramped still from the awkward treatment position. Definitely in no shape to even attempt to run from him again. For now.

The sun bit her eyes harshly when they finally emerged from the spaceport. Squinting she stumbled alongside Boba who was not affected by it. She nearly wondered how he did it. Nearly. Stupid. His helmet most likely balanced out the lighting levels. Once she was out of this all, she had to get a helmet. Two uses! One to hide her face and prevention from stabbing pains. Maybe it was a lesser advantage, but really… she wanted to be petty!

She was in her right to be petty! Screw being the level headed medic! If she had to suffer Boba Fett, he might as well suffer having her!

At least the town was pretty. Grumbling to herself she watched as happy children bounded past her chasing a hover ball and adults going in and out of buildings. No one noticed them. Was that good or bad?

Bad. Everyone should notice she was in distress. See the stupid collar and see she was here against her will!

 _What then though_? She stopped when it hit her. Even if they saw it and made the connection, why would they care? Would they think she was a slave? Who would be foolish enough to try and free someone's _property_? Especially Boba's? No one was that stupid.

Not as stupid as Soren… She winced visibly when Boba's hand clamped on her shoulder when her thoughts turned to Soren. His fingers dug into her shoulder bones uncomfortably making her thoughts scramble from … she couldn't even finish the thought.

"This way," he said simply pulling her into a street away from the market and its noise and bustling masses. Had he noticed her thoughts turning to something painful? Was she that obvious? Maybe she should learn how to make her face more blank? Though even if why would he care?

 _Coincidence_.

Where was he planning on taking them? The buildings seemed all the same, except maybe a flower pot there, a curtain. But other than that? She had no clue where she was. The stream of people had lessened but it was still there. This time she looked at them now. Who were those people? What was this world? Was it like on Teth where people had to hide from the rest of the galaxy? Like her?

Most of them wore tunics. No weapons to be seen on belts, at least they were not openly visible. But… she did see armoured people carrying weapons. Though like with the civilians their postures were relaxed, shoulders not tensed, nor did their eyes flit across the people around them. Not like the inhabitants of Teth did subconsciously.

Mostly civilians then.

They were probably sticking out like a sore thumb. Wasn't the point in laying low? What was Boba thinking? Was he trying to pass off like the other armoured people whatever their business here was?

Smugglers? Bounty hunters? Mercenaries?

She looked over to Boba who kept his eyes, at least from what she saw with the helmet on, on the street in front of them. The hand on her shoulder was still there, keeping her right beside him. He didn't look like he had nearly died a day ago from an infected wound and contaminated bacta. How did he do it? Really. She had treated patients like that before. They had been knocked out for days before being able to shuffle around awkwardly from that. _Men_ ….

They rounded a corner into a broader street. So… a parallel street to the market place connected by streets going away from it. Huh, she had to keep it in mind for any escape plans she'd come up with later on. She turned her head more to the side to glance backwards to see if there were any significant markers she could use to identify that street.

Not subtle enough. Boba leaned to her side and pushed her face forward again with his shoulder. Then his helmet pushed against the top of her head, making her freeze up from the proximity.

"Don't even think about it," he said lowly while tightening the grip on her shoulder. _Damn him_! A shiver ran up her spine at the threat. _Of course_. She was so stupid. Hanging her head now against the armour of his shoulder, she watched as he moved them further down the street without slowing down.

He had been here before. There was no other way given how confidently he was steering towards somewhere. What it was she'd just have to see.

Wait and see. Patience _. Master Renstan, was patience really going to save her here_?

That was when she saw the uniformed men. All in black leathers and rifles in front of them. As if they were waiting for trouble to jump into their paths. She tensed and stumbled when her feet disobeyed her. Only Boba's grip saved her from falling. He only tugged her to the side, letting the men walk past them. What were they?

She opened her mouth to ask Boba, but then snapped it shut. No. No talking to Boba. Though, the motion had been seen and for some reason he knew what she had wanted to ask.

"Those are the enforcers here," he explained simply making her jump slightly. How had he known she would have asked that? Shuddering she tried to shrink away from his touch, but couldn't from how tightly he kept her in his grip.

Enforcers? Like a policing body? Like in Corusc… no she would not delve into this right now.

They couldn't be trusted. Wait… she could trust them! Surely they'd help a kidnapped girl? Remember Soren! He tried to rescue her… Boba would kill them. She should not endanger any more people on her behalf. In the end she would have to rescue herself. If only she could do it.

What… now who was that? Her eyes had fallen onto a creature standing in a doorway to her left.

Was that a bird? She frowned at the being that had a beak and a body covered in feathers. It even had wings! What was that species? It was definitely sentient. Pieces of a conversation in basic drifted over to them as they walked past. For some reason she could not take her eyes off.

How come she had never heard of the species? Cause… No. No dwelling on it. Then the sun's light hit the feathers and they shone so brilliantly orange that her mouth fell open in wonder.

But then she was violently turned into another direction. What the…? She wanted to see more! More tugging and she stumbled along. Fine. Whatever! She looked straight into Boba's visor in protest. Seriously? All she did was look.

"Don't stare," he stated and she cringed at the slight tone of reprimand could be heard. Was it rude? "I have never seen a species like this before," her defense slipped out before she could bite her tongue. Boba seemed to pause slightly. As if to think on his answer. But they never slowed down.

"They are the native species from Rishi. Next time you see a species you have never seen before, do not stare at them like an object on display in a shop," he explained quietly ushering her into another street. Away from the colourful feathers.

Oh. She felt… ashamed? The horrible burning in her gut was the same when the doctor had chided her for all the pranks she had pulled with Soren. Back then… She squeezed her eyes shut and pressed her temple into the cold hard armour.

The one thing she should be aware of, she screwed up. How often had the doctor drilled into her head to never stare at wounds openly? This was the same concept. She would have been a bad medic.

 _But what was she then_? A bad medic was still a medic. For now. What she'd give for the doctor to hold her in his arms and soothe her tears…

No comforting words came though. Only a rough hand on her shoulder, and hard metal against her temple. It would not do to cry now. There had been no tears on Teth. Why now? At least they didn't come and after a couple of deep breaths she could stare in front of her again.

She had no clue where they were, what way they had taken. Had it been all a plot from Boba's side? To distract her? It wouldn't surprise her if he had used it to throw her off. But… what he said was still true, right?

It was. She was just an idiot.

Boba suddenly stopped in front of a larger building. Music could be heard inside of it. Cantina music. A cantina? Somewhere to sleep? Was he seriously thinking of staying in a cantina?

She was confused. How long would they stay here? Wasn't it a bad place? Looking to the side she saw how busy people were around them. How easy would it be for her to blend in? Rather easy. But… that would mean he had a way of keeping track of her. One she had not discovered and she would be foolish to try anything.

Bastard. He knew!

Before she could say something he pulled her inside, the smell of alcohol hitting her nose and she recoiled from how strong it was. Bah. Even Teth's little hole hadn't been that bad!

No one looked up or the ones who did seemed disinterested. As if it was every day the most feared bounty hunter walked in with someone in tow. Somehow she did not want to know what that was the case.

Eyes front. Do not pay attention to them. They would not help her.

Two Weequay were rushing around the bar, filling drinks or demanded credits. So they owned this place? Or just staff.

One of them, a male, saw them first.

"Oi, long time no see Fett!" he waved at Boba with a dirty rag. The patron between him and Boba stiffened.

It was almost amusing how quickly that patron vacated the chair he had previously occupied. What was Boba's reputation here that people voluntarily left their seats if he stepped in? Maybe she should know before planning any further escape routes. Without involving anyone. That was going to be difficult.

"Ever the gracious host Monts," Boba retorted sarcastically, pushing her forward until her knees bumped into the seat where the patron had been a minute ago.

"So where have ya been Fett?" Then Monts noticed her and his eyes grew smaller. Almost like Soren's, she swallowed, when he was about to tease, "Ohhh. Picked someone up," he waggled his eyebrows at Boba who only cocked his head to the side in response. Whatever it meant between them caused the Weequay to burst into laughter.

"Aight, I will stop," Monts proclaimed setting the rag down, his face growing serious.

"Ya gonna spend money or stand here all day?" He asked causing Boba to chuckle this time. The vibrations going through his hands on her shoulders. This was confusing. She never had that with Soren. No stop thinking… she was a lost cause.

"I need a room," Boba explained, one hand leaving her shoulder and something behind her rustled. Then a bag of credits was plopped in front of on the bar. Monts did not hesitate to open the bag to peer inside.

"Huh, a couple of days?" Monts looked up "I see you won't stay with an old friend." Was that supposed to be a joke? It had been delivered really flatly.

"Business, Monts," Boba responded and this time she heard the smirk. So yes, a joke. He had humour?

"Ahh, it is always business," Monts winked and then swiped the bag of money off the bar. Wait hold on? Had he lain low with others before her?

Of course. If she had the energy she'd have face-palmed. He had mentioned that the rates of laying low were as usual. Of course it was usual. But it hadn't meant specifically here?

"Ya know the way, Fett. I need to stay here," Monts nonchalantly waved them off dismissively. Boba chortled this time. It was a deep rich laughter, a bit modulated but she felt it nonetheless. How was someone like Boba Fett capable of being friendly?

Boba guided her towards the back of the room, past the bar and onto a staircase. Her feet were sluggish when lifted.

 _He had been before_. No shut up, she needed to concentrate on the fact he was the enemy. Way easier to hate… She didn't actually. Grounding her when she woke up without the Force. Soren… he saved her from that. Saved her from…

Agh. No, she was not going back to it. Forget what he had done. She was still with him and had to get away. Anything that made him seem more… human was just going to hinder her. No. She was getting out of this. Master Renstan did not rescue her from the burning temple for her to fall into the Empire's hands later. No. She owed him that much.

Boba would tear up the planet looking for her though. She'd need allies. Allies that had a chance of either fooling Boba or holding their own against him.

Was it even right of her to pull more people in? Soren… He had tried. He tried to kill her. Would it have been a mercy? She froze up. _Mercy_?

The hands on her shoulders tightened and tried to gently push her forward. Mercy? Mercy?! No. Yes? _NO_!

The hands snaked underneath her armpits, making her shiver. He was too close! But her feet would not obey either. Soren had wanted her to not deal with this. For him death would have been a mercy for her. The Force had felt so wrong when he pointed the blaster at her face. Had it wanted her to survive back then? Why would it want her to be a Sith apprentice?

She felt herself being hauled up the stairs now. Again… she was doing this again. Get a grip. She took a deep breath and released it. Finally… finally she could lift one of her legs on her own accord. The arm across her chest loosened a bit when Boba realized she was there again.

He was doing it again. Being _friendly_ ….

Oh stop questioning it.

There were doors strewn around the staircase and they kept walking further up. Were they going to be at the very top? Silence hung heavily between them and it itched beneath her skin how something unspoken was hovering between them.

Why would it matter if something was unspoken between them? They were captor and captured. It was simple. Should be simple.

Then it was a simple answer to it all. Death was a mercy. But then why did the Force tell her that it was not? Why did she want to _live_ so badly on Teth?

They stopped in front of a door. It was made of wood. A strange sight really. Normally the doors she had seen were out of metal. Curious.

Finally she was aware again. How close Boba still was, his chest armour digging into her shoulder blades and the sharp edges of his helmet digging painfully into her skull. She started to squirm, to get away from the sharp pain. He sighed.

"Back then?" he commented flatly while pushing the door open and guiding her in. She stumbled over the threshold into a small room. It was smaller than her apartment but… it wasn't supposed to be. A bed and there was another room to their right. Presumably the fresher.

She did not answer Boba. There was no need for that, he already knew she was there again.

"How long as we staying here?" She asked instead, turning around to face him. His helmet was still up and her hands itched to remove it. It would be better to face him face to face. Was it? A helmet was easier to yell at.

Though, did it matter? She could not just disregard what he had _done_ that was good to her either. Wasn't that also why she treated him? The choice was made, she had to stick with it. Good or bad. It no longer mattered.

"A couple of days," Boba answered while removing his helmet. She was taken aback, his eyes were on hers. It felt weird. Even without the Force it felt like… she was not even sure what it was. As if something else was looming over them.

"I thought you said a couple of months?" It came out as a squeak. She cringed slightly. If only a few days, she would have to start planning now and fast.

Boba started chuckling.

"It will be months, yes. But we will go somewhere where you…" He intensified his stare on her face, she had to swallow, "can't run away too easily."

He shot her a grin then and she had to bite her tongue to not hiss at him.

"Do you really think that you are the first person I had kidnapped?" He remarked bluntly, turning around to lock the door. The soft clicking of the lock being shut rang in her ears. There was always the window right? She glanced over to a tiny window next to the bed.

"The window is five stories above ground and it is locked," Boba informed her from behind making her turn her head back to him. He had thought this all through then.

"I suppose you are the best for something then," she retorted before she could kick herself. He stared at her for a moment. Had she managed to stun him? Then he started laughing.

"Aye, I am not the best for nothing," he pushed past her setting his helmet onto a table opposite the bed. She stared at the back of his head as he walked past her. The hair was sticking from his skull in all directions. They both needed a long and relaxing visit to the fresher. He needed to clean his bandages, clean the site of wounds.

Speaking of which…

"You need to get new bacta patches," she blurted out making him turn around, his face stunned. He didn't move, just continued staring at her. It made her twitch. Seriously? She had treated him, she was going to continue to care about his treatment.

"How many times do I have to call you a fool?" He snapped now, the light interaction from before completely gone. Snuffed out. His eyes had a hard glint to them now, boring into hers. To search for something? A cold shudder ran down her spine. Why was he so touchy about this? She only wanted to make sure he did not die of an infection. How was that bad?

She opened her mouth, but what could she say what he hadn't heard before? Closing her mouth, she stared back at him. Was it worth getting into a fight over this? No. Sometimes even the doc had to let the patients rage first and then come back. Maybe she should do that?

But hadn't she been doing that already? He just kept walking right over her, even now!

There was no point in talking back. She knew she had done the right thing. What he thought did not and should not affect her. Though, somehow she couldn't make herself detach from that. Sighing she looked down first.

Silence fell over them again, neither of them shifting from where they were standing. She kept staring at his armoured boots.

"If you think that treating me has gained you a favour, you are dead wrong," he hissed quietly and it made her snap her head back up. What? Again with that argument?!

A favour? Did he really think she did it so he'd be obliged to let her go? She continued staring dumbly at him. This had nothing to do with that! Her voice was gone, gone somewhere and swallowed in a black hole. Was there anything so say? No. Pointless.

He kept staring at her as if he'd get an answer through that. Setting her jaw, she decided she would have to tell him. Eventually.

"I did it because it was the right thing to do," she said slowly, this time keeping her eyes trained on his face. Not a muscle twitched on his face, his expression blank. A pause. Then he raised one eyebrow.

"If that is the case," he answered, "then you are a bigger fool than I thought."

Fine. Let her be the fool. Seemed like she would not be able to convince him otherwise. Let him think he knew what she was up to. She was not going to correct him. She kept staring at him, not bothering to answer since it would be just wasted energy.

"Sit down," his voice had grown sterner, deadlier and he motioned to the chair cramped into one corner of the room. She hesitated but his hands were on her shoulders in a heartbeat pushing her not so gently towards it and suddenly whirled her around. Her feet weren't fast enough to keep up with the motion causing her knees to buckle. She fell onto the chair hard. Wincing at the impact, she looked straight back up to Boba who fixed her with an ice cold glare. She had to swallow in her fear.

"Listen and listen well. You are my prisoner," he emphasized the last word his hands gripping her shoulders more tightly now.

She frowned at that. Why did he feel the need to say it out loud? The collar on her neck was enough of a reminder of that fact. When she did not respond he continued after briefly searching her face for something.

"You will always be near me at all times. The only time you will be alone is in this room. That collar?" one of his hands wandered from her shoulder to her neck, tapping the collar with one finger. She flinched when the palm of his hand settled where her neck met her shoulder. It made him pause for a moment, but he didn't seem too caught up on it.

"If you try and escape, you will be cuffed again," he continued. Just cuffed? A bit lenient… Her frown deepened and he answered her unspoken assumption.

"Both hands and feet," his stare grew into a glower. She shrank away from it. Who knew he could sound so annoyed?

"Now consider the lack of cuffs as my thanks for treating me," his voice had gotten a bit softer. Surprised she opened her mouth to say… what exactly? Thank you? Was this a favour? Yes that was it. Why go back on his word?

"You said that I wouldn't get any favours from you?" She questioned. Curiosity making her bold. He stiffened, his eyes narrowed slightly.

"It is not a favour. A favour would be me letting you go. This is my thanks. Do not make me regret that," he explained and the pinched lips and hard glint in his eyes made her look at him more closely. Surely that meant it was a limited favour?

No she would not question him further. She did not need to antagonize him further. For now. For now she needed him lenient. So she had a better chance.

"Now," he lowered himself down in front of her, his face level with hers now. His hand that had rested on her collarbone went back to her shoulder. She frowned. What was happening? Her eyes were trained on his. If she looked away now, she'd show she was weak. Not when she didn't know what he was trying to do.

Too close! Her chest tightened when his intense stare settled closer to her and she had to swallow heavily.

"Now tell me what happened on that bridge," he asked calmly.

Her eyes widened. He meant what happened with Soren? No. She was not thinking about it. No. Shaking her head she looked anywhere but at his face. He could not make her think about this. She refused! Not ready to go back... not to the way his face had twisted into shock when he fell. Shaking her head harder she squeezed her eyes shut to unsee it.

Hands were on her face now and forced her to stop shaking it. She forced her eyes shut tighter. He would not have this power over her. No.

Soren's face swam in front of her suddenly. NO! Her eyes flew open and she stared in deep brown eyes and not light blue ones. Breathe. It was Boba. The one who saved her. He looked pensive at her. His eyes were hooded as he looked at her. Studying her.

"That man had been a friend," it was no question. A statement. How did he know? How?

"How do you know?" She croaked. All she could focus on were his eyes who grew warmer? Was that possible?

"You had your back turned to him. A deep situated trust to do that in your situation," he explained and she felt herself nodding.

"But explain to me why did he try and shoot you," he asked and it was like a fist being driven into her stomach leaving her winded. Breath escaped her and her head swirled. She knew that Soren had tried to kill her. But hearing it said out loud? It was like a slap in the face.

"He did," why did she feel the need to talk about this? She was handing him her weaknesses! _Stop_!

"But that was not why you collapsed," again why did he say it if he already knew? This was confusing. Why did he care to know?

"Why are you asking?"

"You mentioned a temple, you called me Master Renstan. You were somewhere else," he continued keeping her eyes on him his thumbs near her nose. Was that what was grounding her mind to reality at the moment? How did he know what to do? Was he clueing in on… Please no.

"You were back to that day. Order 66," his face grew softer but she only saw Kine's murderer. _Fight. Flee_. Her hands were shaking while her chest grew ice cold as she practically smelled the burning flesh again making her stomach twist. She was on Drog II. Not on Coruscant. She was _safe_.

"How did you escape?" The voice brought her back. This was Boba. Not the one who killed Kine. He killed Soren. _To save her_.

Something cold ran down her nose. Tears? Since when was she crying? Confused she lifted a hand to wipe at it, but Boba wiped it away with a thumb. She froze. Only Master Renstan had ever done that. He had no right to do so.

No right at all! Who did he think he was? Compassionate was not who he was. How dare he pretend he had an ounce of it! _He had not rejected her burying her nose into his neck…_ That wasn't compassion! That… was… UGH! She did not know. Shoulders stiffening, she felt herself growing tenser, like a tensed coil ready to spring. _Yell, rage, anything_.

Though it would not serve her to yell at him, her eyes relaxed as did her posture. She could not risk losing her relative freedom of movement now. Not for something that was a decade old. Though what should she say?

A croak escaped her when she opened her mouth to answer. Hastily she closed it again. Truth or a lie? Truth. Had he ever lied to her?

So far he hadn't. Might as well return the favour.

"Someone saved me before I could be killed," she said quietly, remembering how Master Renstan and her had hid for weeks in the bowels of Coruscant before being smuggled off world by the Organas. Boba did not answer, only regarded her for a second.

"Someone pointing a blaster at you caused it?" He asked after a moment. She looked at him closely now. Why would he want to know? Why? Why care what made her remember?

"Someone I trusted," she added. He already knew. Might as well save energy and not hide it all. Her limbs felt heavy. As if remembering had made her sleepy. Her eyes widened.

Bastard. He had made her talk… It was as if her head cleared. Weak! _Breathe_ …. _Breathe_ …

Her vision narrowed on his face, black edges closing in like a ring. Her hands had curled around his wrists when he had gotten ahead of her trying to wipe her tears away. How easy would it be to sink her nails into his skin… He now knew what happened to her and why. Would he abuse it? Yes he would.

 _Fight_! Her hands cramped suddenly. How tightly had she been gripping his wrists? His face showed nothing if he knew what she was grappling with. As if he was waiting for something…

Think this through. If she started fighting him, if she started clawing at him… she had to take a shuddering breath. Then… he'd most likely bind her again and her chance to flee gone.

He did that on purpose. To make her lash out. So he could justify binding her again.

Manipulative son of a Hutt! He wanted an excuse to cuff her! To make it seem like it was justified. That was why he said he would not grant her a favour! Technically it was a favour, but he had always been planning on taking it away as soon as he made her lash out.

Clever. Might have worked on anyone else. But by the Force. She was not going to play along. No. He was going to eat his words. Maybe shove it up his butt too.

Looking up, she glared sharply at his face to see any smugness. None. There was none! That made no sense? Surely he'd relish in her nearly losing it.

"I see," he replied simply, his thumbs retreating from her cheekbones back to holding her face still by her temples. Certainly didn't seem like he had been baiting her. He definitely did, had been really subtle about it though. She continued to glare at him. His eyes still were on hers and she knew he was trying to get more secrets out of it. What else he could want she did not know.

He already knew most of it.

"I know the name you called me," he suddenly said. What? Her mouth fell open in shock.

How?! Before she could formulate a coherent sentence in her head he continued.

"This Master Renstan you mentioned. I have seen him," he explained further. When? After he had left her on Teth?

"When?" Her voice was wavering and so quiet. Get a grip. Was he okay? Was he… still alive? Why did he leave her?! She had needed him to teach her, tell her what she was sometimes sensing was normal.

"Five years ago on Taris," he answered, shifting on his feet slightly. Five years ago. Taris? The planet that once used to be a waste land turned near city planet again? Did that mean he was dead?

"Did you…" she left the rest unsaid. Boba knew immediately what she meant, cocking his head to the side regarding her intently as if thinking of a reply.

"Kill him?" he bit back a laugh," No I did not."

Nothing else? She searched his face for any indication that he lied. But… she wanted to hope. Hope that he was still alive.

"You did not hunt him?" She had to know. If he was being hunted.

"No," that was unexpected. If he wasn't hunted then why did he dump her on Teth? Without an explanation without a goodbye?

"He was not on Teth," he stated. She stared to a point past his shoulder. It should be answer enough. What he thought the answer was she would leave up to him. Honestly, she did not know either.

"Did you really expect a Jedi to stick around?" His tone had grown too cold, making her shiver. What? How did he know?

"What do you mean?" She was stalling. Probably clear as day to him what she was doing. Didn't stop her from trying. He sighed. She looked back at him, he looked tired. Dark circles underneath his eyes were apparent now in the light. Was it evening or morning? There was no way to tell. He looked human now. It was confusing.

"Jedi do not form attachments," he drawled now. She knew that. There was no emotion, there was peace. That line had been drilled into her early on. But they still had a duty of care nonetheless?

"I know," what was he getting at?

"That Jedi did not care what became of you, so he _left_ you," he said emphasising 'left' with a harsh spat. What? No! Renstan cared! Surely he left her on Teth for valid reasons? Right? But… why would he leave her if he hadn't been hunted? She opened her mouth to contradict him, but the words choked themselves on their way through her throat.

"No, he must have had a good reason to…" she found her voice her again and fired back. But he didn't let her go further.

"The Jedi were murderers."

She blinked. Huh? What? No? What was he going on about? Her ability to speak was… gone. He was still staring her down.

"They meddled in the civil war. Slaughtered everyone," he hissed making her press herself into the back of the chair. What civil war? Slaughter? No. They were always kind, warm… She shook her head. No. Lies! Remember, he hadn't lied to her yet… Why would he now? This was big! Was he trying to make it easier for Darth Vader to mold her?

"You are lying," She whispered hoarsely back. There was no way this was true. No.

"They killed my father," he insisted and now her stomach fell to her knees. No. They wouldn't do that! The Jedi were good, always strove for peace! Surely? They had fought to end the war! Not to kill everyone! His father?

"Your father?" She squeaked. Who was his father? This was all wrong! Maybe a misunderstanding!

"Ever heard of Jango Fett?" Who? She shook her head. Never heard of the man. Boba's father. Why would the Jedi murder him? That couldn't be. He was messing with her.

"No," she bit back and she saw him deflate, looking lost.

"No?" He asked for confirmation.

"No?" Why he insisted on asking was beyond her. There were a lot of people in this galaxy. How would she know this one single person? Seriously, she was not the Force….

"A Jedi killed my father, that is all you need to know," she swallowed at how disgusted he sounded. He had hated the Jedi before they were even hunted down like animals.

Something hot flared up in her stomach. How dare he? How dare he lie to her face about something like that? The Jedi were good. Not _monsters_!

"No," she spat back. Surely she deserved not be lied at after having treated him?

"I watched it happen," his voice grew lower his eyes got this hard glint again and… fear gripped her throat choking out any retorts she might have had.

"Watched how my father had no time to fight back, when the Jedi cut off his hand and then his head…" his face was so close now and she gasped. Beheaded? That was barbaric! A Jedi wouldn't do this! She refused to believe this. It was just a lie. Right? If she could just sense…

Shuddering violently she shrank away from his face, away from his overbearing presence that was there even without the Force to sense it. If that were true…by the Force, she shouldn't even think that far.

Though… if true, what had the Jedi been truly?

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 **AN: Hope you enjoyed the chapter. And really I love all the reviews I had gotten so far! Made my day. Heck I nearly squealed in one of my lectures when I get such an email notification. Thank you :) Also thank you to all the follows and favourites I have received as well.**

 **Note: The massacre/civil war Boba is talking about is the battle on Galidraan. Death Watch manipulated the situation in such a way that the Jedi that they slaughtered a group of Mandalorians to protect Death Watch. An event that according to some people started Dooku doubting the Jedi. Furthermore the sole survivor of that was Jango Fett.**

 **Please review, follow or favourite should you wish to. As I said this was edited without a beta. If anything seems weird, please point it out and I will try to edit the chapter and replace it after.**


	8. Chapter 8

**AN: Hey, guys. I managed to finish editing and my beta SapphiraBlue on AO3 was being awesome to work with. Also, I think I mentioned it on my profile, but there is a picture of Altharya and Boba on my tumblr ( Nusaran), done by silvergryphon.**

 **Also, this story has hit over 1k views! Yay. I am really happy about this.**

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She continued to stare at him. What could she really say? All her thoughts were… she did not know what to think. He sounded so sure, as if it was a fact. As if… a Jedi could do something so monstrous. All she had ever known was the calm and serenity of the temple and the elders around her. Surely they could never be capable of such an atrocity?

No. No! _Impossible_.

She looked closely at him, studying the muscles in his face, to see if anything betrayed him lying. Nothing. Just the face of a tired and angry man. Why was he trying to prove to her that the Jedi were evil? What…

Oh. Her gut clenched, her nose burned. She felt sick. He was trying to make her being more susceptible to becoming Vader's apprentice.

That was not going to happen. Try and make the Jedi seem bad. _Liar_.

"You are lying," she said and watched how his face closed off suddenly. That was weird. Shouldn't he try and drive the point further? She was not budging.

"Think what you want. But when you see, do not come crying to me," then his face was gone. When had he moved? It had been so fast. He was towering above her again, eyes hooded, still watching her.

"Understood the rules?" He asked, his tone leaving no room for further argument. As if there had been any to begin with. She swallowed heavily and nodded. The rules… they had been clear.

Shuffling her feet on the floor, she looked to the ceiling. What was she to do? She was tired. So was he. Who was going to sleep on the bed? Him or her? He should, he needed to recuperate as soon as possible… Hang on. If he was still recovering from his injuries, she'd have an easier time to run for it.

That was just wrong. To wish someone a slower recovery. What was she becoming? Her fingers curled into the wood of the chair, her nails chipping away at it. She'd have to deal with the splinters later. Not now. Now… she just needed to think. Though she wasn't getting anywhere, that much she knew already.

Had the Jedi done all of this? No. She had been there already. They could not have. It was simply not in their nature. Unless… she did not know everything. But how could she find out? Whatever happened with Boba and his father, it happened over a decade ago. There wouldn't be any records of it anywhere.

She had to look. Had to know he was lying for sure. For her own sanity. Though where should she start looking? The Jedi were dead, the temple probably razed to the ground by now; the only witness she had was Boba, and she couldn't rely on him. Who would even know?

A start would be to know who Jango Fett was in life. Maybe that would lead her somewhere.

The door slammed shut and her eyes snapped towards it. Boba had left the room. Great. She was alone. Sighing, she stood up and walked to the window. People were still bustling down below, lost in their tasks. All she could see were their heads. There were even more of the... Rishii? Was that their name? She leaned her forehead against the glass and stared at a group as they walked past, their feathers glittering in the angled sunlight.

She looked up. The sun was hovering in the gap between two tall buildings. Either evening or morning, that would remain to be seen. But she was tired. Slowly she turned around to look at the bed.

If Boba was not around, she might as well catch a bit of sleep on it before she'd be kicked off it. Yawning she fell on top of the covers and closed her eyes.

Sleep took her as soon as her cheek hit the pillow. For once, her sleep was dreamless.

She woke up when the sun rose again the next morning. Dried drool was sticking to her left cheek and she weakly wiped at it before rolling on her back. Cloth rustled when she did. It was dim in the room. She couldn't really see. Was it in the late evening or early morning? Her fingers closed around soft cloth around her. Was that a blanket? Who? What?

Who would… Boba? She frowned at the thought. No. That couldn't be. Surely he would have kicked her from the bed? She sat up and felt the blanket pooling in her lap. Disoriented she looked around the dark room. Where was he?

She didn't register the soft snoring immediately. It came somewhere to her side. Slowly she shifted towards the edge of the bed and … something sticky was between her legs.

Oh. _Kriff_.

She wanted to cry. Why did her period start today of all days? Did he even have stuff for that kind of scenario? Her face was burning. That was going to be awkward once he woke up.

Now where was he even? Surely he did not sleep on the floor? Why would he? He had a bed right here! She was weaker than him in all areas. He should have taken the bed with the injury… Oof, cramp. She hissed at the sharp pain in her lower abdomen.

Running was kind of out of question with this. The universe was conspiring against her. So unfair.

The snoring was louder where she was now, her head hanging off the side of the bed. So he was lying right next to it. He would immediately know if she got up. But she needed a shower, she felt disgusting. It would smell and she really did not need to have the smell of dried, old blood in her nose the whole day. Hopefully it had not stained her clothes too much. Getting the blood off would take at least a day, if not more.

She edged down towards the lower end of the bed, where she wasn't going to land on his stomach immediately. It was probably what he was hoping she'd do, so he'd know if she tried to escape. Another cramp made her stop. Human biology put a firm stop to those plans. Bad timing, if one could even call it that anymore. Should have taken the birth control route when it had been offered. But noooo, she had to say no because she had no partner.

A hand suddenly closed around her forearm. A scream died in her throat when another clasped around her mouth choking it and all air was suddenly driven from her lungs when a large weight crashed on her back.

Ow. What?

"What do you think you are doing?" Boba's voice whispered into her ear. How had he heard her? She had been quiet! There had only been… of course. The rustling of blankets. If she could have, she'd have sighed. But no, she was practically smashed against the mattress underneath the weight that was a rather pissed bounty hunter. His hand retreated from her face.

Sucking in a breath, she answered.

"I need a shower," it was the truth after all. He could either believe it or shove it up his… Ouch, another cramp. She twitched when she couldn't curl up.

"Why do you need to take a shower in the early morning hours?" He sounded suspicious. By the Force, did she have to spell it out? Hang on; morning hours. Finally some sense of time.

"Well, I am all bloody…" his grip on her forearms loosened suddenly.

"Bloody?"

"My period started," he was off of her in a heartbeat when she finally said why.

"I see. You have nothing to deal with it?" He asked and she could feel the stare on her back. Of course she had nothing to deal with it! How could she when she had been kidnapped? She rolled her eyes at him annoyed. Really? At least he didn't know she rolled her eyes… Deserved as it was.

"None," she confirmed.

"Alright, once it's daytime I will let you get the supplies you need," he sounded unsure. But she sighed in relief. At least she was allowed to have that sort of decency.

"Can I please clean myself and my clothes?"

"Yes."

She slipped off the bed and winced when the lights were turned on suddenly. Once she no longer had to squint her eyes, she looked over to Boba who was leaning against a wall. He looked better, more colour in his face; tired, yes, but not exhausted anymore. Good. Yawning she stood up and stumbled over to the fresher door.

Hot water made her muscles relax slowly and the cramps were soothed slightly. It felt even better to wash off the filth caked on her skin. The floor of the fresher was dyed red and brownish by the end. Her eyes were droopy still when she finally stepped out.

Where were her pants? Only her top had remained and her skin crawled from the idea to wear it again. Though she only had this one thing to wear. She couldn't choose. But where were her pants?! Surely Boba was not making her run around with no pants? At least her top covered the most parts of her. She leaned against the cool tiles of the fresher. She hastily threw her top on, rolling up the sleeves and tugged down the hem further down. Before opening the door to the room, she squeezed her legs together. The floor didn't need more blood stains than it already had.

Boba was not in their room and her pants were nowhere to be seen. Oof, cramp, she curled inwards at the pinching pain. Right, she needed birth control. Otherwise she'd miss more opportunities to run. Next medic she saw, would get that order.

A sliver of sunlight was now falling in from the window. Sunrise. Not that late then or early. Whatever really applied. Might as well stay up. After she got her pants back, she flinched when another cramp hit and she had to close the door again. Back to cleaning up.

Boba came back after a felt eternity. The lock of the entrance clicked and she leaned one of her ears against the fresher door. The steps that came towards her door were definitely his. She took her ear away and opened the door slightly, just enough to peek out.

Her pants! He had them. What did he do with them? She frowned when he held them towards her, her fingers curling into the cloth. It felt… clean. Had he cleaned them? Pulling them inside and closing the door again, she looked at the part where she knew there had been blood stains.

None were there.

He had cleaned them? How? _Why_? She could not think of a reason. It must serve him somehow to have it clean.

At least it was clean. Now the problem was… she needed to keep it as clean as possible for now and when she would get some pads. Hopefully she could find them immediately. For now, tissues would have to suffice.

Hours later they shuffled over to the marketplace where most of the merchants were still setting up their stands. Boba was back in his armour and helmet was up, scaring away most of the people around them. She had tried to stay back, not to be associated with him. Not that he would allow that. His arm was around her waist again, pulling her along with him. Her head was forced back into his shoulder plate. As if he'd let her out of his sight. Stupid.

So they hurried along the slowly filling street towards a large shop front. At least the window front was huge. Two stories? Maybe three? Bigger than anything she had ever seen on Teth! Her mouth fell open at how many people were pushing in and out of the shop, hovering baskets trailing in front of them. Suddenly a cart burst from the mass, a child shrieking in laughter as it raced past them.

Boba pulled her to the side, letting the cart brush past them. The wind from the cart's speed made a few strands of her hair fly from her braid again. Not a moment later, a frantic woman sped past them after the cart. The mother, she guessed.

The joys of being a parent? Altharya had to bite on her lower lip to not start giggling. Seemed more like a reason not to have one. She looked up to Boba who looked after the two, something in his eyes that she could not decipher. Was he remembering or wishing? If only she knew.

No. She should not wish to know him better. It would just complicate things. All that mattered was her freedom. And she needed pads for that. But… a hover cart might be something she could also use. Would it be theft if she took one?

"Hop in," when had they moved inside? Stunned she stared at the line of hover carts in front of them. How did this work? Before she could even ask, she was lifted by her knees and practically dumped into the cart.

Ow! Jerk! She was on her back and scrambling to get a hold on the edge when she felt the thing lurch up. Her hands were gripping the cart's edges when she felt her body being pressed down from the acceleration upwards. She leaned her head backwards to see Boba peering down at her.

"What do you need?" He sounded nonchalant. As if this was normal… Maybe it was… but give her a minute to gather herself.

"Uhhhh," she could only say. What pads did she need again? He sighed in impatience as they moved forward, shelves flying past them.

"So…" he actually sounded lost when the cart stopped suddenly. But finally she had enough grip to sit up properly. A whole shelf with pads and others for her problem lined themselves in front of her. So much choice. Were her normal ones there? Yes. Hastily she grabbed a pack and put it beside her.

"You will need more," he remarked drily.

"I won't need the whole pack worth of pads for one month," she raised an eyebrow at him. This was easily enough for six months. How could he not… Oh right, men.

"How long will a pack last you?" There he was again. The calculating bounty hunter.

"This will easily last me six months, give or take a month," she replied turning the pack in her hands. Definitely the brand she always used.

"Take another one, in case."

"Why? Can't we just come back when I need more?"

"Where we are going, we will not come out until we are called," he hissed quietly and she swallowed. She was not staying anywhere near him for a whole year! But he did not need to know that.

Just how long would Vader let them wait? Hopefully not an eternity. Rolling her eyes she grabbed a second and felt the lurch of a moving cart again. Her back hit the cart wall again and she let go. Whatever he needed now was not for her. She had what she needed. Not really, but she couldn't really ask for some tea.

Something soft hit her face suddenly making her yelp. What the… She grabbed the item on her head and held it further away from her. Clothes? Was he just grabbing stuff?

"Why are you getting me clothes?" She asked stunned. His logic was completely out of her grasp now.

"We are going to be here for a few days. If you run around in one outfit, you will attract the wrong attention," he explained before tossing another set of pants down and her stomach lurched when they hovered down.

"What kind of attention?" It couldn't really get any worse, right? He shot her an unamused glare. Her joke hadn't been appreciated. Damn, even he could see the humour in that right?

"Do you want to be seen as poor? The poor sometimes disappear," he didn't elaborate further but she had gotten the hint. Disappearing usually meant sold into slavery. Teth had been spared from the slave trade. Most had just been mercenaries or bounty hunters. It hadn't meant she wasn't aware of it, given how close they were to Hutt space too. While it would mean she'd be out of Boba's grasp, she'd never be able to get out of being a slave.

No, she gripped the new clothes tighter; she would not become one of them. Even if it meant staying with Boba for a while. That was better for now. Up to the moment he would deliver her to Vader. Then she was worse off.

They didn't talk more while Boba sped them to a checkout. She peered over the edge of their cart as they swerved around a corner. Others didn't even look in their direction. So many armoured people around that they were rather normal. Then she saw a Rishii comparing two sacks. Of what, she wasn't sure, but she knew that he was debating animatedly with another human. Suddenly both were laughing and she looked to the right.

Why was a store clerk watching them? It was just two people holding their merchandise? As if noticing her stare, the human turned around and his face darkened. The Rishii's feathers visibly dulled and he handed the sacks to the human.

Weirdly enough the clerk turned around and continued working. What difference did a Rishii make? Somehow she was just confused.

The check-out went over quickly. Credits clanged when they were put into a register, and then she had to get out of the cart.

A shame really. She had just gotten used to it. Her legs were shaky when they touched firm ground again. The new clothes and pads were stuffed into Boba's backpack while they walked out of the store. More people had gone outside and mingled on the street, whether purchasing or working. Was that a baker? Others were running between buildings, while some just leaned on their stalls waiting for customers.

Teth hadn't had a market. This was all so overwhelming. She stopped when she saw a young man run past them with his arms laden with books. Books about medicine. A medical student! Like her! She bumped into Boba whose hands settled on her shoulders again.

"Keep moving," was all he said. She slowly started moving again, keeping her eyes on the retreating student until she no longer could spot him amongst the others. If she could have gone to a university, would she have run around like that too? All loaded with books and no care in the world?

But they were moving again, one of Boba's arms around her shoulders to keep her near and moving. The Eclains had walked around like that on Teth, when they had felt like it, the old Selonians with no care left in the world. A couple. Which she and Boba were not. Hopefully no one mistook them for such.

Running a hand through her hair, she looked forward again to where they were going. He was keeping to the edge of the square, avoiding the middle. The street they had come from was to their right, so probably the fastest way?

Though, the massive tower in the distance with hover-cars and trains blinked in the now half up sun. It looked pretty. Was that where the ship was? Not that she could steal it. It would be beneficial to know though. Would Boba look there first? To see if she was stupid enough to steal his ship? He wished… Though wasn't the tower in the middle of this town. So if she kept going in a …

A loud scream to her left made her stumble, her head whipping to where it had come from.

Silence. Then, the scream resumed, but this time from thousands of people around her. A mass panic. Her opportunity?

She could not see what it was, but… her shoulder was free! Jerking away from Boba, she bumped against another who pushed her further towards the middle. People were pushing against each other. More screaming, more yells. She felt herself being pushed around and she couldn't do anything about it.

Not where she wanted… A man was clutching was a small body. A body that did not move. His loud wailing starting to drill into her skull and she winced away.

What was she doing? She went to her knees next to the man, who sank his hands further into the body's clothes.

All breath left her lungs when she saw it was a child that he was holding so close. Chest wound. Blaster bolt. The pungent smell of burnt flesh finally reached her nose.

"I am a medic," flew from her mouth before her mind could even register what was going on. Hands were on her shoulders now and the man's face was so close that she fell back.

"My daughter!" was he screaming? A girl. No older than maybe five? Unconscious. Dead? Her fingers dug into the smoking hole in the chest area tearing the cloth apart. Had not hit the heart. She might have a chance. Maybe. A wall of burnt flesh smell hit her nose, making her clasp a hand over her mouth and nose. This was worse than anything she had had on the surgery table. Her free fingers pressed against the small neck. Was that a pulse? Yes, weak, but there. Maybe there was hope. The entry point was black, dead tissue. She couldn't save it.

What she could do…. _Heat dissipation_! The heat of the blaster did not spread through flesh quickly. All she could do was cool it off, make the secondary damage not as devastating. Stem the bleeding that would ensue would be a concern for later. Clothes drenched in cold water.

"Water," she yelled at the man, whose eyes were bugging out of their sockets now. He looked confused, his jaw falling to the floor. Civilians. Idiots. Remember?

"Water. I need water!" she spat out, ripping a strip out of the dress. Where was his water bottle? Most distributed water was clean enough.

Finally. A bottle had appeared in the man's shaking hands and she ripped it out of his hands. She tipped it all over the strips of cloth and pressed it against the wound. There was some crackling. Bad.

Kriff. She had no equipment. That was the best she could do. Right… now, she needed to tell the father to keep pressure on the cloth and get her to a med-bay.

She opened her mouth to say something, but an arm was suddenly under her chest hauling her up. Her hands flew to the arm, trying to tear it away. Who…Oh, it was Boba. She now recognized the armour. Why was he pulling her away? That girl was dying… She jerked her head backwards, colliding with the back of her head with his helmet. Hissing in pain, she felt herself hurled around and her back hit something hard and cold. A wall.

"Do you realise what you have done?" She almost did not hear him. Her? Could have done? There was nothing she _had_ done! She gripped at his shoulders now. What was he on about? All she did was basically look over a dying girl. A child!

"All I…" she started but was promptly shut up with a hand on her mouth. What was it with him to keep shoving his hands all over her?

"Of course you have no idea," he hissed pushing her further into a nook where they were both pressed flatly against each other as people pushed past them frantically in their panic.

"You would be lucky if they cannot find you, or worse find out who you are," he pressed his helmet briefly against her forehead. Was he trying to smash her head in? She was going to have a headache in the next few hours. Great! A potentially dead child, an angry Boba and a stampede. Who was interested in some girl in the middle of a stampede? No one.

"Who is this 'they'?" she bit back. Hopefully he'd elaborate, or she was going to do it again should there be a next time. Hopefully there wouldn't be, but… if she could defy him like this again then give it to her. Though… her heart sank. Without a dead child.

Had he said something? She swore he had, blinking up to him she wordlessly stared into his visor. Whatever he had said, if he had said anything at all, had been completely drowned out from all the noise. She frowned. If she could just see his face, she'd at least know if he _had_ actually said something. His arms dropped from her shoulders, but only to go around her back from underneath her armpits.

What was he planning? She instinctively gripped at his shoulder plates when he slightly went into his knees.

Was he flying them back? Was he _mad_?

No. He just hoisted her up in his arms. Had her knees always been this wobbly? But this was so familiar, like on Teth. Though, she looked at the panicked expressions, the shoving, the screaming around her. She was safer here with him. No one dared to even go near him.

He was pushing his way through, yelps and shrieks ringing in her head until… it all became muffled. What? She looked up to see them standing in a narrow alley, away from the crowd. Good, more space to breathe in.

That poor man. His daughter dying. Hopefully they'd find who did it. Sighing she leaned her forehead against Boba's chest armour. To think all they had wanted to get today was pads and some clothes for her…

Monts was waiting for them when they finally arrived at the cantina. She had briefly lifted her head off Boba's shoulder to see them stepping into an entrance that was not the main one, but then lowered it again, resting her head on his shoulder as her temples started pounding in an unbearable headache.

"What happened?" Monts asked, his voice strained. Was that fear? He was safe, there was nothing for him to fear.

"One of the Arions got nearly assassinated," Boba explained, his arms steadying her. At least he did not pry her off, the steadiness of his armour plate rather soothing for the pain.

Who were the Arions? It felt like something she should know. An Arion. The girl's name had to do with Arion. No clue. They must be influential though for Boba to know them or be something to be recognized as.

"Here?! That is bad… kriffin' shit!" Monts sounded shocked, his voice had reached a higher pitch at the information.

"Tensions running high again?" Boba asked quickly, lifting her slightly as they moved forward.

That poor girl. No parent should watch their child dying.

Nor should a child see their parent die. She turned her head, so that her nose was against Boba's neck. He… had, hadn't he? Not a lie? Was her loyalty to the Jedi not deserved? Why would they kill a parent in front of their kid? _Monsters_ …

"I am sorry," she whispered against the cloth on his neck. If he had heard her, he did not react in the slightest. He hadn't then. But it was out should it be true.

"Was it the small Senya?" Monts asked. He sounded sad? She looked up to see where they were.

Definitely not in the main room of the cantina. It was just the three of them. Monts, Boba and herself. However, it was roomier than their room. Monts' living space? It looked like it. A couch, a holo-vision and a table with chairs around it.

Boba was pushed her gently into one chair, while he kept standing.

"We need to get out of here," his voice changed mid-sentence as he took off his helmet. Monts only regarded him for a moment. What did he mean? Why would they have to leave? They hadn't done anything bad right?

"You realise no one will be able to leave? That old coot will not let anyone leave the city with his granddaughter murdered!" Monts hissed at Boba who rubbed a hand tiredly over his face.

"Where is the 'fresher?" She had to interrupt weakly, another cramp robbing her of another breath. Monts and Boba whirled around and Boba gave her an annoyed look. Really? Had he forgotten? After she had slung her arms around her abdomen, he seemed to understand. So did Monts.

He waved towards a door next to the holo-vision. Good, she'd need a minute anyway. No more blood stained clothes or improvised pads.

It took her a moment, to sort herself out, but she felt better and cleaner. Thank the Force.

She hesitated before stepping back into the room where both Boba and Monts were arguing quietly. There had been no window in the 'fresher. _No escape_.

As soon as she stepped back, Boba stopped whatever he was saying and looked at her intently. Her steps faltered. What was going on? He was judging her. Definitely was. Now if someone would tell her what was going, that would be grand. She could not read minds!

"You are staying here. I need to investigate," Boba told her firmly, turning away again to grab his helmet.

"Monts, I will be back as soon as possible," with that he was out of the door they had come in. Monts had only nodded before closing the door behind him.

Silence fell over them. It was awkward. Monts was a complete stranger to her. Someone who was friends with Boba Fett. She had to be careful with him. Slowly she took a few steps forward again towards the chair she had been in earlier. Surely she could sit in it again?

"I haven't caught ya name," she nearly jumped when Monts addressed her directly for the first time. Her mouth opened automatically to answer, but she snapped it shut before any sound could come out. He was not someone she could trust. Why give him her name?

Monts sighed while gesturing towards the chair she had stepped towards.

"Sit down, girl. I am just an old man, who just wants some peace in his last years," he smiled at her while sitting down himself, opposite her, his back to the door where they had come in. Sure. Trust the guy who was friendly to Boba! Sounds soooo _logical_.

"Who are you?" She had to ask. Who was this person who Boba trusted enough with keeping an eye on a bounty... issued by Darth Vader.

Monts grinned.

"An answer for an answer? Is that how you want to play?" She opened her mouth to retort, but… he had asked her something and she asked another question. Yeah she backed herself in a corner. Not like Boba would tell him his name as well at some point.

"Altharya," she said watching him closely. Would he hold his deal?

"I am Monts. Owner of this cantina," he answered. So… she stared at him for a moment. What else could she say?

"Nice to make your acquaintance?" Might as well be polite, even though it was funny. Introducing herself to the friend of her captor.

This universe was a giant joke at this point. At least Monts understood that when he burst out into a bellowing fit of laughter.

"Nice to make yers as well, Altharya," his eyes twinkled in amusement.

"Now tell me, do you have any idea what is going on?" The laughter fell from his face immediately; the lines in his face grew harder. This was serious. Did he even know?

"No," she shook her head in response. He must know? It sounded like he knew something. For once, could she be in the loop about things, not just left stumbling in the dark?

"This system is run by two families," Monts started leaning back in his chair, "both of them kinda want the other's head on a pike, especially now. We are currently in the capital of the Arions. The Brents are on another planet entirely."

He stopped to spread his hands on the table in front of him.

"That little girl that got nearly killed? The granddaughter of the current man running the Arions Corp, Eric Arion," she had to look down when he mentioned the little girl. Most likely the girl had felt no pain. A small mercy.

"Boba said you tried to help her?" He sounded sympathetic. Almost. There was this… she could not say. It sounded as if he was on edge.

"I tried. Boba pulled me away, but she had been alive then," she looked up again. Monts had a dark expression on his face, as if he had met his doom.

"It doesn't matter if she was dead or not. If that assassin was a Brent and saw you trying to help. You are also a target," he pointed a finger at her face now.

That made no sense. Why would they care about someone like her being helpful? She was no one. Really. Who was she to them? To go after someone who ran to help someone who got shot? Insane!

"You chose a side, _publicly_ ," she gasped at how forceful he put the point on the table. What? That had nothing to do with choosing sides!

"How?"

"It is an unspoken rule. You stay out of the conflict. If you do, you will get caught up in it. Those two families are petty. And any assassin will clean up after their kill. Anyone who saw the injuries up close," he glowered at her now.

He knew about her training? He must know. But clean up after a kill? Did that…? Oh Force… She looked at Monts now and her hands were over her mouth now. He was in danger! He had said it himself! _She was such a failure_ … One more in her mess.

"You are staying here until Boba gets back," Monts got up slowly, groaning when his knees popped loudly.

"What about you?" She had to ask. Even he was a friend of Boba's, no one deserved to be dragged into her mess. Monts only stared at her, stunned. As if she had just told him the Force had manifested in front of them.

"I can defend myself," he opened a cupboard to their right. What was he… she leaned forward curiously. What was he up to?

"The same cannot be said of you." She recoiled in horror as Monts grabbed a rifle from the depths from the cupboard. How did he have a rifle? He slung it around his shoulders while giving her a pointed glare. She had to bite her tongue. Her defense was cut off! Not her fault!

"Where is Boba?" She asked weakly.

"Him? Oh, he is out assessing the situation. If it was even a Brent operation, not some extremists getting too cocky."

She drew a breath. So maybe it was not that bad? _Patience_ … They were just being cautious. Though… her eyes flew open. Monts was Boba's friend. Surely he knew who Jango Fett was in life? Maybe this was her only chance to ever know truly what had happened? All she had to do was ask. No. Would Monts even answer her? It seemed more like a private issue. Would it be her intruding? How could she? Boba brought it up first, she was by all means involved in it.

"Monts?" She asked, before the new found courage left her.

"Aye?" He sat down again with a bottle in his hands, this time facing the door.

"Who was Jango Fett?"

Monts actually _spat_ out whatever he was drinking.

* * *

 **AN: Riiiight, hope you enjoyed it. Do leave your thoughts in a review, follow or favourite. They really make my day.**

 **Anyhooow, I think I should respond to some reviews.**

 **JediOtaku** : Altharya will have something to think about, definitely. The seeds are there, now what will grow out of them is an entirely different question :P

 **Taylong Azhyn** : Hiding in a populous town is only an option because he will need to stock up before disappearing with her. Since he got that gig pretty much sprung on him after he had caught her. Definitely has contacts in this system, but they will be introduced one by one :P Monts is one of them and I hope you like how I put him down in this chapter.

Also to answer your question on psychological assault. He basically woke up on the road to recovery, knowing she treated him. In his mind, she is still on the path of "I am a Jedi, therefore I must do x,y,z." and you know he does not like the Jedi. So he is trying to make sense of her motivations in all honesty, because she insists it was not because she is a Jedi. And he wants her to see that being a Jedi can mean something completely different to some people than to others. Also to him, she should have let him die back then. He was weak and she treated him. Hence we have him blathering on about favours and him thanking her in case she did it as a "transaction" deed.

In summary, he is confused and tries to make sense of the situation. End result, both are confused.

 **Roter Tod** : Hey, thank you for reviewing so far! Yes, Boba has some big emotional problems. Problems I can imagine he has not worked on. Given what we have seen I would not blame him if he generalised Jedi with what Windu did to his dad. Hence him talking about his dad and Galidraan.  
Also, are you German? Really love that name.

 **As a note. I had a lecture on lasers in medicine the other day (well a few weeks ago now). Basically blasters fire with some type of laser tech. Nothing new, but it means there is kinetic and thermal energies applied to the body. Aka we are dealing more with heat dissipation and some kinetic energy transfer Now. Why is this important?**

 **-This is why Altharya dumped water on the wound as a first thing. Heat dissipates relatively slowly through tissue (because it is mostly water) and cause of Thermodynamics the cooler the medium the more likely the heat will dissipate to it. Yay Physics!**

 **\- burn wounds are no joke. The necrotic tissue can cause infections if not removed. Hence why High intensity Ultrasound therapy is regarded with a critical eye atm. Because it burns tumour tissue from the inside and relies on the body to get rid of it.**

 **\- Because of the kinetic part of this whole Star Wars gun lore, she needs to stem any potential bleeding. The immediate tissue that came in contact with the laser will have evaporated, surrounding tissue dying off fast. Potential cavitations. There will be bleeding.**

 **Now for real life. Lasers do not deal direct damage. Buuuut, a big but, their secondary effects are the reason why there are safety manuals with them. The thermal effects primarily.**

 **The most powerful lasers will set you on fire.**

 **Aka, do not point any laser in anyone's eyes. I will whack you if you do. With a chair.**


	9. Chapter 9

"You do not know?" Monts gasped in surprise. How was she supposed to know?

"I only know he is Boba's dad." She shrugged at the old Weequay.

"Oh frick, Jango was the best bounty hunter back in his day. Boba here was trained by him," he looked at her as if she should know. She hadn't known, but… it made sense? Though why would a bounty hunter be killed by a Jedi? Surely he must have resisted any peaceful settlement?

"So Jango was a bounty hunter, but… I don't understand why this is so important?"

"You were once a Jedi youngling." How did he know? Her mouth had fallen open. Surely this was not that well known? Why would Boba tell him that particular detail? A Jedi killed his dad, that was what he said. In front of him. She closed her mouth. But… a bounty hunter? Surely he committed a crime then?

"Why does it matter?" She had to ask, she only had assumptions. Something concrete would be nice. Maybe for once she could… get a grasp on the person that was Boba.

"A Jedi killed his father," he answered. She had to sit back against the back of the chair. Oh Force. It was true!

"In front of Boba and left him, a nine year old, alone in the middle of a warzone," Monts continued. She had to grasp at her throat. A Jedi left someone in need alone in danger? Just like Master… She shook her head. There was no way that the Jedi she had grown up and heard about later were capable of such… An outlier. It must have been an outlier. Certainly, right?

"Surely the Jedi was punished accordingly?" She protested. It had happened, but it didn't mean all of them were such… monsters .

"No." What? She shook her head harder. That could not be right!

"Altharya, have you ever heard about Galidraan?" Galidraan? No. All her studies were on the more well-known core worlds. Before her world had gone up in flames.

"What happened there?" She whispered hoarsely.

"Genocide. One the Jedi participated against a group of Mandalorians, in a civil war they had no business meddling in," Monts had this guarded look in his eyes as he finished. It was like someone rammed an ice cold spike into her spine. Genocide? Something the Jedi committed?

"How can I trust you?" It was the only defense she could bring up. The only thing… she could make sure the both of them were not lying to her, to make her doubt the Jedi, to be… malleable.

Monts sighed. Something rustled and clanked when it landed in front of her. She looked up to see a datapad lying there.

"If you don't believe me, see for yourself," he sounded weary, his rifle now laying across his knees now. He kept his eyes on her though. Right. She could look for herself. Hesitating slightly, she reached for the small datapad. She needed to confirm, to see if she was being lied to.

Her fingers shook as she opened up the holo-net application. Galidraan. Alright. Time to see what happened. Jedi were supposed to seek the truth. She typed in the keyword in and… a lot of results popped up. Government, general information. Right. Maybe it was in the history section?

Civil war? The year was way before she was born. Civil war… Mandalorians against Mandalorians. One contacted the Jedi and the Jedi…

Oh no.

No no no no no.

They hadn't lied. The Jedi had killed them all! All… except… Jango Fett. Boba's father. Who was killed by a Jedi later. The Jedi had left the child in a war zone…

Monsters ….

Were those tears running down her face? She hadn't noticed. Sniffling, she put down the datapad, wiping numbly at her eyes. What did that make her? A Jedi youngling. A murderer in the making.

"Do you see now?" Monts asked now, gently. Aye, she understood. Understood perfectly.

"The Jedi were supposed to keep the peace," her voice was as weak as she felt right now.

"You were but a child when the Jedi were killed, I cannot blame you for their actions. However, do you see why no one stood up for you?"

"Yes," she understood. Why stand up to people who fought in a war, committed genocides… who killed parents in front of their children? All the while spewing their intent on keeping the peace.

She felt sick. Downright sick. Her nose was burning and her stomach clenched. By the Force. She had idolized monsters ! More tears poured out… it was embarrassing. She couldn't control it. Monsters… All of them! Was Master Renstan the same? Had he done this too? Had he left her on Teth because he didn't care ? Just a whiny youngling who cried too often?

He had left her and he didn't even care to check up on her. Just like Boba said.

A large hand patted her shoulder awkwardly. Monts. His wrinkly face looked concerned. She didn't deserve that level of consideration at the moment.

"There," he handed her a large white piece of cloth and she took it gratefully.

"I thought…" She began, a hiccup interrupting her and she had to cough. Monts sighed.

"You were a kid. Kids idolize their families," he shot her a sympathetic smile she could not answer. It felt all so wrong. The Sith were the monsters, it had all been paraded around back in the temple. The Sith did that… they did this! All a lie? A lie to make sure they didn't question anything they'd ultimately could do… had done?

All was a lie. There was no peace. Peace was just a lie !

Monts left her there, with a tissue and her tears. Though, there was nothing really he could say to make it better. He had not been a Jedi, he had not been raised to look up to them as paragons of justice. Only to see that they had not been better. How could she be so naïve?

Boba had said so though? Naïve, foolish… A Jedi, in his eyes, who treated him when she could have left him to die. No wonder he thought she had an ulterior motives by treating him. Then again… she had said she was not a Jedi. She had said that she was a medic. A medic was what she was trained to be, had grown up to be. As soon as Master Renstan left her on Teth, she had stopped being a Jedi.

Maybe that had been a mercy. Small mercies ….She released a shuddering breath.

But… did that mean she should apologise? For something she had not done? Something a Jedi before her had done to him? Who was most likely dead at that point? Though he did deserve an apology. From her? She hadn't done anything. But he wouldn't get it from anyone else. Clearly he saw her as a Jedi.

It would either mean everything or mean absolutely nothing to him. She could try. Though, would it even be genuine if she did it? Whatever she felt right now … the sympathy. The feeling of grief for him, it all stemmed from the fact that someone she had been associated with had done to him. The apology would have to come from the one who committed all of that, one who was most likely dead. Her? What would her apology even mean?

She looked down on her hands. They had never held a lightsaber; all they had held were syringes, scalpels, needles… A medic who apologized on behalf of an extinct order? That just screamed genuine. Not …

"Monts?" She asked, finally feeling like she could stand again.

"Yes?"

"You said that I publicly chose a side… Does that mean the Arions will regard it as such too?"

Monts frowned.

"They would. Though," his frown deepened, "the last time something like this happened, the people died shortly after."

She swallowed heavily. Hence her being watched by him. Someone who knew how to handle a rifle. A cantina owner…. How did that compute?

"You are not from here," it blurted out from here before she could reign herself in. Monts twitched violently. She flinched at the reaction. Had that been a touchy subject? Shit…

"Aye, I am not from here. How could you tell?"

"A cantina owner who knows how to handle a rifle? It's not really something that I'd consider usual."

Monts chuckled briefly, taking a sip from his bottle.

"Observant. I used to be a bounty hunter. I knew Boba from those days. He visits sometimes in between bounties," he flashed her grin while looking back to the door.

A friend. Someone he trusted enough to guard her. Guard and contain. But a friend he trusted nonetheless. When had the lines she had hoped would never blur blurred nonetheless? She kept silent. If she said anything more, she'd see more of Boba as a person and not… the monster she was running from. Oh kriff. That line had been blurred as soon as she soothed him back on the ship. Blurred? More like completely obliterated. Groaning she threw her head back in frustration and held her head. She was screwed on so many levels, it was practically impossible to dig herself out on her own. So they waited. Either for Boba to return or for the assassin to find them. Right now she'd rather have Boba return. An assassin would definitely kill her, Boba she could maybe escape from. Easy choice. Really.

A knock on the door made her shoulders tense up briefly. She turned around to stare at the door. Stay or flee?

"Just Boba," Monts grumbled as he got up to open the door. Her shoulders fell. Right, just Boba. He stomped in, no words said in greeting, Definitely in a foul mood. Could she blame him? Not really.

He looked in her direction briefly before turning to Monts again.

"The Brents did this," he took off his helmet, "the assassin has gone underground for now."

Did that mean they were safe? She stared at Monts now. Maybe she could see the answer in whatever he was going to say? Though… her stomach sank- the worried expression on his face meant they were not safe. Underground meant in hiding right? So no danger for now?

"Kriff, you need to get her out of the city," Monts hissed, pointing at her now. Hey! She was right there! Bristling at being so openly ignored, she looked to the two bounty hunters having a stare down.

"Everything is barricaded, blocked. We would most likely be seen as the assassin fleeing," Boba argued back. He looked tired, mostly annoyed though. She looked away, to the small window at the back of the room, above the couch. It must be late afternoon by now. The light filtering in had more orange hues than in the morning. A shadow passed over it. Really quickly. Her skin prickled and the hair on her neck stood on end.

The assassin was out for them. For her specifically. All because she managed to stabilize the girl? An outsider. They were out there. Maybe the shadow was them… No. At least, not necessarily. Could have been anything. She could not swallow anymore, her throat constricting in fear. Could Boba go up against an assassin?

Of course. Sure ?

Suddenly she sensed Boba's presence near her. It was imposing, even without the Force with her. She looked up to him as he quietly regarded her for a moment. Then he went on a knee next to her, so his eyes were level to hers. His eyes locked with hers, deep brown on her grey ones. Something was about to be asked, something she might not be comfortable with.

"We are going to lay a trap," she opened her mouth to respond, but shut it again immediately. She had nothing to say. Lay a trap? Really risky.

"Did Monts fill you in on the situation?" At least he didn't sound accusatory anymore- one thing going for her, for once. Sighing, she nodded slightly.

"We both will lie in wait in our room," he lowered his voice more and she had to lean in to actually hear him.

Too close! She could smell him and… he was too close. He occupied the most of her field of vision. She felt trapped, but she couldn't help but stay where she was.

"And when he comes, we will be ready," Boba finished explaining, retreating, leaving a cold space in front of her. What in the frick just happened? Her emotions were all over the place. That was it. Nothing else.

"I will keep watch downstairs. Poor Kertan has not had a quiet minute since the whole debacle," Monts sighed and walked towards Boba.

"My comm link is activated, all you need is to beep," he looked serious now as he motioned for her to get up. Her knees wobbled slightly as she walked to where Boba was standing. How were they even setting up this trap?

"Come," Boba laid a hand on her shoulder and guided her out of the door into a staircase.

"Our room is one up," he pushed her towards the first few steps and she climbed them in front of him until they reached the door they had come out this morning.

As soon as they were inside, he strode over to the window and checked the lock. She stood awkwardly in the middle of the room. Alright? What was she to do? Stand still and be as obvious as possible? Instinctively she looked to Boba for … direction? Boba was tapping at the lock.

"It will have to do for now," he muttered before turning around to her, looking at her for a moment. His helmet was in between his arm and waist, waiting to be put on again. When had he been last out of his armour? Then he strode past her to the light switch, dousing them in relative darkness. The afternoon sun angled away so that practically no light fell into their room. All she could see was a grey outline where he was when she turned around to where he currently was.

"What will I do?" she asked him directly. If she was to do something, she would need some direct instructions. Boba hesitated, at least it seemed like it. His body stilled for a moment before stepping towards her again. If she stretched out her hand she'd touch his chest, he was that close.

"We will hide," he said simply and stepped closer still.

She took a step back and his hands shot to her elbows holding her in place. Hang on… we will hide? Them both? Being close to him? Oh no, no. She was not prepared for that! Throwing her weight against Boba only made him grip her elbows tighter. Well, here went nothing. She threw herself down on the floor.

Tried .

He practically stepped forward to prevent it. Cursing, he yanked her up roughly, one of his arms going around her waist. Her right hand flew to his side, punching him in the side.

Ow. She had hit the armour plate. He did not even twitch a muscle.

"I will cuff you if you keep resisting," he hissed into her ear and she froze at how close he was. When had he gotten so close? His arm around her waist tightened and she kicked feebly in the air as she was promptly lifted off ground. Her arms gripped at his shoulders so she would not tip over to the side.

"Now listen, I am only saying this once," he growled and his breath washed over her face. She squeezed her eyes shut. Do not think of how close he was now.

"You and I will hide in this closet and wait. And you will be quiet," he finished as his other arm wound around her shoulders and lifted her shortly to toss her into the closet, not two feet away from them.

She impacted hard against the wooden panels, her lungs briefly not being able to catch any air. Then he was pressed against her and closed the door to the closet. Silence fell over them and she had to focus on breathing. He was practically pressed against her completely. If she moved, she'd brush his waist or legs depending which limb she'd move. By the Force this day was getting better and better!

Dropping her forehead against his chest armour, she groaned in defeat. Fine, she'd sit still in a cramped closet with Boba. She tried to shift, her arm settling in a small space that their bodies left in between. Right no dead arm in a few hours, the other stayed on her side. It would not touch him at all. The same could not be said about her legs, they were practically smashed in between his.

So they waited, silence hanging over them like a curtain. It was almost as if she could pretend he wasn't near her. Even if his breathing was about audible near her ears, she could tune it out. The rising of his chest could easily be felt as her own movements. Frankly, it was not as bad as it could have been.

Almost. If only her thoughts had remained on that. Nope. They all focused on what she had seen on that datapad. Galidraan. So Boba had not lied.

Sure she had known before. Though, how could she have believed him then? She had grown up with the Jedi and lived with people who never talked about them. Had she blinded herself to her happy memories in the bad year before settling on Teth? It was plausible. Many abuse victims sometimes put the blame on themselves, not on the abuser, citing that their partner was good and could do no wrong. Was that what she had done with the Jedi, a group she barely remembered anything about? She only remembered Kine clearly. Much else was hazy.

Night fell shortly after, the last bit of light disappearing, drowning them in absolute darkness. Only his smell and his breathing were reminding her she was still in a room. On Drog II. Was the sound amplified? It was as if he was whispering to her with it. No, he was breathing. There had been no change in it… She was thinking too much. Plain and simple.

When had her cheek landed on his chest? It was definitely on his chestplate, rising and falling with him. Her eyes fluttered on their own. Stay awake. She couldn't be dead weight when the assassin came.

To be honest, however, what could she do? Get in the way?

She was staying right here. It was safest so far, even if it meant that she was wedged uncomfortably between a wooden wall and Boba with his armour. Safe. His breathing was even and steady, not like a few days ago… when she actually had feared for him dying underneath her. Comforting, in a sense, as if nothing was wrong.

She slipped into a dreamless sleep, lulled into it by Boba's calm, steady breathing.

There was no telling how long she had been asleep for when she finally opened her eyes again. It was pitch black, still. Was she still inside the closet? The wood pressing against her back confirmed it, as well as the painful cricks in her back that sparked up as soon as she moved a muscle. How long had it been? Hours? She felt like an old person! Ow…. Her cheek was resting against cool metal, like before. They had not moved in their position for hours now. How long did they have to wait for this assassin?

If he even turned up at this stage. Maybe Boba and Monts had assumed wrong? Had he decided not to attack tonight? Especially with Boba Fett near her? She huffed slightly. Who was she kidding in the end? If she or Boba were in the way for an assassin they will try to get rid of them. No matter how great one's reputation was.

Should she say something though? They hadn't talked, and they were practically on top of each other. Her face suddenly burned up when she remembered how close they were again. Quietly, she sighed… Her mind really was not the greatest ally sometimes. By the Force, if this continued, she might consider sticking around Boba for whatever reason.

This was her sympathy speaking! She remembered what she found out about Galidraan, about Jango Fett. If she could just get it out of her system, she could go back to resenting him properly .

"Boba?" She whispered quietly into the darkness, waiting with a held breath for any reaction. There was a tiny pause in his breathing rhythm. She had startled him. Silence grew heavier and she bit the inside of her cheek. Why was he not answering?

"Yes?" He asked quietly. Releasing the breath she had been holding, she moved her cheek further up so she probably looked at his face. Probably didn't, but with the darkness she could pretend.

"I … was told about your dad, Jango."

He stilled. Completely. Her stomach dropped. Was he angry? Was she about to die? Not a single muscle twitched, not that she would have felt it, but his chest didn't rise anymore. Was he holding a breath? Her fingers gripped his chest plate tighter. Her lower lip trembled. She shouldn't have said anything, idiot !

"Monts?" He finally said something, his chest falling as he breathed out.

"Yes," she closed her eyes concentrating at the small movements underneath her face. Not that they were of much use anyway.

"What did he say?" He sounded strained, as if he was holding something back. The memories. Memories of how he died most likely. She couldn't blame him, after all she saw Kine dying in her dreams sometimes. So she waited a moment. There was nothing she could do with memories that were not hers.

"He only said who he was…" she drew a breath, tensing. Galidraan. She had to say it.

Otherwise it made no sense why she even brought it up. It was still hard to admit that the people she had spent a childhood with had not been what she was remembering. Suddenly a hand was on her back, between her shoulder blades. What was it doing there? What was he doing? She tensed even further when the hand moved to her shoulder, shifting her body more on top of him. What? Her fingers lost their grasp on the chest plate, sliding down until he stopped shifting her. Right, now where was she positioned? She moved a finger and… was that his helmet? He had shifted her further up. So he could hear her better…. Of course. No more excuse to keep stalling on her part. Damn.

"He mentioned Galidraan," she said quickly and gripped the cloth around his neck tightly. Something to hold on. The hand on her shoulder stilled and the neck underneath her fingertips turned. Metal touched the tip of her nose. His visor?

Shit they were close. Any closer and her mouth would be touching the helmet. A shiver ran down her spine.

"You believed him?" He sounded skeptical, his hand on her back digging painfully into her. Her muscles tensed and she had to bite down a hiss.

"He let me look it up," she offered and then finally his hand relaxed.

He didn't say anything else, but he didn't push her away either. Waiting for something she'd say. Right. For her to apologise. If that was what he was after.

"I am sorry for what the Jedi did," she said it slowly and she could not help the cautious tone. Would he accept it?

"For?" She groaned and dropped her forehead against his visor. Fine. Play that game!

"For… murdering everyone, for meddling. For your dad," she was rambling she knew. But there was not a lot she could pinpoint! How did one apologise for a genocide ?! Anything meant nothing at all!

She wasn't done. There was one she had to mention.

"And I am sorry for you," she added lifting her forehead from his helmet and stared up. She'd see the closet ceiling if there was any light here.

He jerked when she said it, and she lost the strength in her arms holding her up. Her face smacked into his helmet, her chest impacted hard on his chest plate. Hissing, she tried to curl inward, as her nose and ribs throbbed in dull pain. Though, he kept her from doing much in that regard. He had his arms under her armpits, holding her slightly off of him.

"Me?" He sounded… Expressionless? No emotion. Frowning she looked down, settling her hands on his chest plate again.

"Yes, you."

No answer and he set her down again, making her wince slightly.

"An apology will not bring them back."

"I know. But no apology is worse."

"Your apology is worthless to me," his voice was like steel when it cut through her chest. Shocked, her mouth fell open. Hang on… What just happened? Her heart twisted painfully. Worthless? Why?

"Why?"

"The Jedi responsible for all of this are dead," his voice had gone so cold that she had to shiver from it.

"Then why hold me responsible?"

"You were once one of them," he said and she shut her mouth.

"Guilty by association?"

"You have not proven to be nothing like them. So I will go with what I know, and I know Jedi are corrupt and the galaxy burned for it," he hissed and she froze. So much hatred. How could she not have seen it? Did he mean the war between the Republic and the CIS? She knew that Jedi had fought in it. But… they hadn't caused it.

"The Jedi are better off gone," it was like a punch in the gut when he bit it out and… she could not even argue back. An organization that willingly went in and killed off a group for opposing ideas on government. The War had been that, in essence, hadn't it? Opposing ideologies; and the Jedi, instead of pursuing peace, had jumped right in the war effort.

"What about me then?" She had to ask. Did he consider her a Jedi nor or still viewed her as such. Did he think she should die?

He hesitated. This time she felt his eyes on her face, like invisible fingers prodding on her skin. Goosebumps rose on her skin along her forearms. It was as if he was searching for something in the darkness. Had she thrown him off guard?

"Should I have died with them?" She pressed on. Why she felt the need to know was beyond her, but it was burning underneath her skin. Prickled in the back of her mind. The longer he waited the worse it all got. What was going on?

"I thought you said you are no Jedi?" She practically saw the raised eyebrow in the darkness and underneath his helmet. A snort stopped short in her throat. Turning her words against her like this. Why was she not surprised… Sighing she looked to the closet doors. This was going nowhere it seems.

"I wouldn't have cared if you had," it was quiet, but resolute. But she had heard it. She snapped her eyes back to where she knew his face would be. Oh right. Once a Jedi always a Jedi? Even if one hadn't never been one, only an Initiate?

That was enlightening…. She felt herself deflating and put her head back on his chest plate, facing away from him again. Silence hung over them again, suffocating her.

His hand on her shoulder remained, rising and falling with her chest.

Why did it feel like something had changed, when nothing had? Was she looking too deeply into his touch right now, as pressed for space as they were? He said he didn't care, or ever would. Now she knew what he thought about the Jedi, and as an extension, what he thought of her.

Something clicked., so quietly that she almost was sure that it had been her imagination, if Boba hadn't tensed up as well. It had sounded like a tiny needle dropping onto a tile.

The assassin. Her muscles froze. Someone was in their room. Specifically to kill her. Her breath caught in her lungs and she wanted to scream. Ice ran over her spine and she felt herself shrinking away until her face was buried in Boba's armpit. For once she was glad she had no access to the Force; otherwise she'd feel the person in their room now, feel how they were searching for her.

Her hand, clutching the edge of his chest plate, tightened its hold, her knuckles protesting against the strain.

She was safe. Boba was there and he didn't need her dead. Otherwise the big money bag he was getting would be gone. His arm around her shifted and she felt him taking aim. How had he taken his blaster out? She hadn't even felt him do it. The hair on her neck started prickling. Definitely not the Force, but what was it? Gut instinct? Was this how people knew someone was nearby, out to get them? A creak of the wooden door made her heart burst with fear. Her eyes squeezed shut tightly. That had been the closet door. Why was Boba not doing anything?! Her throat prevented a whimper breaking the deafening silence, it was constricted so forcefully.

She felt the recoil before the sound of a blaster going off registered in her mind. Then, a yell. Had she screamed? Her body rocked against Boba and… she waited for the pain. Had the assassin gotten them? Had Boba failed? Her throat didn't feel raw. Definitely not her yell, then.

Nothing. No pain. Her eyes flew open just as the slamming of the window shattered the silenced around them, and she felt herself tipping out of the closet, Boba dragging her outside with him. Had he been hit?! Frantically she tried keeping a grip on his armour plates. It was all too dark.

He was moving, though, not groaning in pain, nor was he curling in on himself from wounds. Good? Not hit? What was going on? Why had they come out of the closet?

"Kriff," he muttered, repositioning his hands to underneath her shoulders to lift her slightly off him. Footsteps stomped behind the door to their room and she froze. Who…

Suddenly the lights were turned on. Oh bloody… Ow! It was like needles were stabbing her retinas, and she had to shut her eyes again to make the spots go away.

"Monts," Boba said, sighing while shifting her off of him. Slowly she opened her eyes again. There he was, Monts. Rifle drawn, still in the doorframe.

"He escaped," Monts stated drily when he saw a trail of blood on the floor. She got up on her knees, breathing out, trying to calm her rapidly beating heart. It was just Monts. They were safe for now. Boba had injured the assassin. No injuries. All was well, for now.

"Aye," Boba agreed while getting up, "Definitely not an amateur. Professional. Knew the layout of the room."

"A native?"

"Probably."

"We also have more problems," Monts sighed, pointing down the stairs with his thumb.

"What is it now?" Boba sounded exhausted and annoyed. She agreed, for once. What now? They had enough on their plates!

"I suggest you come down," Monts motioned for them to follow him and before she could take a step forward, Boba gripped her left forearm and dragged her up.

"Right," he looked over her briefly, as if assessing her. She swallowed. Was there something he was looking for? She frowned up at him. What are they to do with an assassin out and about? Someone who was professional?

He tugged her with him, down the stairs to the main room of the cantina. Which was relatively empty. Odd. Weren't there more people around during the night? Unless it was a quiet night? The chatter from the patrons was soft background noise, easily missed. Most of them were sitting in the booths towards the darker corners of the room. She nearly missed the group standing at the bar.

No. Those were not patrons. Uniforms, black, with blue pins.

The enforcers of the city.

Five people waiting for them, weapons ready as if they were expecting trouble. A large woman stepped forward, her eyes fixing on her briefly, before settling on Boba. What did they want? Monts said that she had chosen a side in this conflict she had no clue about. She pressed herself closer to Boba's side, the uninjured one. Whatever they wanted, she felt safer with Boba still. Her gut twisted when she looked at the pin and the five people who built themselves up in front of them. Threat? She threw a glance to Boba, who looked fairly relaxed. Was she missing something?

"I come on official orders from the Arion family. You are to follow us."

* * *

 **AN: Hope you enjoyed reading the new chapter. Thanks to SapphiraBlue (who can be found on AO3) for editing this chapter.**

 **I am currently in the middle of exam season (it will be over in middle of June so please bear with me). Do tell me what you thought in a review, follow or favourite, any of those are very much appreciated.**


	10. Chapter 10

Altharya froze when the woman stopped talking. The Arion family wanted them to go where? Did they think they were the assassins? No, if the assassin saw it, then surely the father knew her face? She gripped Boba's arm tightly in case it all went haywire again. He seemed… not tense. A good sign? His face was impassive at the order, no reaction.

"The assassin came to our room. You might want the blood sample," he said while pointing up with his hand. She looked to the female officer again, whose eyes widened at the news.

"Is the assassin dead?"

"No, he fled."

"Alright," the officer nodded to one of her subordinates who stepped forward, opening

a pocket on his chest.

"I will need to take a few samples, Ma'am," he explained, while looking at Boba. His eyes snapped to Monts, who stepped forward.

"I am the owner, I will take you up," Monts offered making the officer step forward to follow him. But before they left, Monts spoke to Boba.

"Watch your back out there. Times are uncertain," and then he was leading the officer away from them, up the stairs. Altharya had to look to Boba, whose face had grown softer at Mont's statement. Had that been a goodbye?

"Will you please follow me?" The female officer, who still hadn't disclosed her name, asked again. This time she sounded impatient. Boba looked to her now, the softness gone, replaced by steeliness. Altharya had to swallow at how rapid the change was.

"And where exactly are we going?" He asked, now tensing up. The hand on her arm travelled down to sling around her waist, as if he was preparing to haul her away with him. The officer noticed it too, and put her hands up as if to appease. It put neither Boba nor Altharya at ease.

"You are invited to stay at the Arion Manor outside the city for the ongoing investigation. I am officer Kiani. There is a speeder waiting outside to take you there," Kiani answered, waving towards the entrance of the cantina.

Altharya craned her neck to see if she could see it. But no- the doors were closed. Did they have anyone watching the speeder? It would be careless if they didn't.

"Whose orders?" Boba asked, the hand on her waist tightened, digging into her flesh. He was testing them. For authenticity, maybe?

"My orders come from Mr. Eric and Morion Arion. Do you also need my identification number, sir?" Kiani answered, and the 'sir' was downright mocking. Altharya felt herself bristling at that. He was just checking it was not a trap. She shifted slightly on her feet, causing Kiani to look at her now.

"You were the witness and you are in danger, I would suggest you come with us," Kiana addressed her directly now. She seemed sincere. Altharya had no clue what to do, so she looked to Boba, who frowned at the officer.

"Before we do anything. Identification," he demanded. Kiana bowed her head slightly and pulled a small card from her chest pocket, handing it to Boba, who snatched it out of her hand. Altharya winced slightly at how rude it was. Then again, Kiani deserved it for being rude. She looked over to the other officers. Their eyes were on the surrounding patrons, looking for any oncoming trouble. It was as if someone was about to pounce.

They knew who they were dealing with, right? Somehow she had a feeling that the fact that Boba Fett was there hadn't quite registered yet. She was waiting for when they'd finally realise. A smirk tugged on the right corner of her mouth. They were in for a surprise.

"I see you are officially appointed," Boba said slowly, disrupting her observations, mocking Kiani right back. Altharya looked to him again as he handed Kiani her identification card. Was he out of his mind, taunting her like that?

"And you are?" Kiani looked down her nose at him. Actually, this was amusing now. Battle of wills? Altharya nearly rolled her eyes. This was ridiculous. They should take up the offer. It was probably the safest way to go about this. She was fairly sure that the glint in Boba's eyes was amusement, and she had to bite her lower lip to burst out laughing.

"I am Boba Fett," he flashed his teeth, and he threw Kiani a smug smile when she stiffened and her eyes widened. Oh? So she hadn't known what he looked like? Curious. How was that possible? But she had heard of him. Maybe knowing a notorious bounty hunter on Teth was less unusual than on other planets?

The officers who had been on the lookout eyed him, and Altharya, strangely enough, warily now. She was the least dangerous out of all them. Scoffing, she stared at Kiani, whose face had drained of colour, before she composed herself again.

"The invitations still stands," she said pointedly, but looked at Altharya while saying it. The hand on her waist twitched slightly. Maybe she should say something- otherwise they would stand here until time ended.

"I accept the invitation," she answered flatly and Boba stiffened next to her. She ignored him; he could think it as a bad idea as much as he wanted. It was necessary that they go with them, though, to gain access to resources they could use to track down the assassin faster. The faster they tracked them, the safer they'd be, and the assassin would have less time to plan ahead. She felt Boba's eyes on her, boring a hole into the top of her head.

Well, he could keep his opinion to himself for now. They could deal with the consequences later. Monts would be safe and she could make sure that the assassin was brought to justice. Nothing else was more important. Heck, escaping had to wait for _this_!

"Follow me please," Kiani motioned for them to walk behind her as the officers behind her stepped up to form a circle around them. That much protection wasn't really necessary. Boba injured the guy! Unless they suspected more than one, then it would make sense.

"Are you out of your mind?" Boba had lowered his head to hiss into her ear. She turned her head to look him straight in the eyes. Her forehead bumped with his and she recoiled slightly. Close. _Too close_. Oh for Force's sake, they had crossed that boundary too often now. It shouldn't bother her anymore. Her stomach didn't twist, nor did she feel disgusted when he was close. It was weird. She shouldn't think about it. Confusing was describing it mildly.

"More resources to catch the bastard," she explained quietly, continuing to stare at him. They were moving now, ignored by Kiani and her officers. _Thankfully_. This Kiani seemed less than happy about escorting them to the leader of this planet. Not that she blamed her, given the circumstances.

"I am more concerned with laying _low_ , Altharya," he fired back. She frowned at him. If he was so concerned with laying low, then why was coming with her?

"You are more than welcome to stay here, but I am going," she retorted when they stepped outside. The cold night air made her shiver, having nothing warm to cover herself with. Boba sighed and looked away from her. No comeback? Not that she wanted one, but for once she held the ropes and by the Force she'd use them as much as she could. Payback never had tasted so sweet.

She followed his gaze and saw the speeder that was supposed to pick them up. Definitely not any speeder that would have graced the town she lived in on Teth. Far too… flashy. Boba didn't seem impressed. Were there flashier ones? Definitely not something she'd want to see. The door was open and she took a step to climb in, Boba right behind her. She sank into the seat and she nearly slid off in surprise at how soft they were. What was that fabric? Leather? Cloth? Once she found a grip on the seat, she buckled herself in. She glanced sideward to Boba, who had his helmet on his knees, staring at it furiously. Sighing, she looked away again. There was no winning with this guy. Three of the officers slid in with them, seating themselves opposite them, weapons still readied.

It had to be noted, though, that they were not aimed at them. It was an improvement given what had happened on Teth. Why was it still cold? Goosebumps were covering her forearms now and she rubbed them, her fingertips numb. She needed gloves….

She startled when Boba slung his arm around her shoulders and drew her closer. What was going on? Stiffening, she looked up to see him rolling his eyes at her.

"You are freezing. Just let me," he murmured before draping his shoulder cloak over her upper body, shielding her from the draft. Another kind act, on top of the growing pile. She leaned her head against his shoulder. Her eyes settled on the helmet on his knees, the black visor reflecting the changing of lights outside. They were driving already? There was barely any motion to be felt.

Slowly but steadily she warmed up again, her fingers grasping the cloak around her now to keep it around her body. No one said anything, and she felt her eyelids starting to droop the longer she stared into the visor. How late was it?

Her breathing evened out and her eyelids were closing for longer now, to the point where she wasn't even aware anymore how long they stayed closed. Boba made no indication if she had actually fallen asleep, looking passively at the officers opposite them. She shifted so her temple was not necessarily pressing against his shoulder plate. Given how sore it was, she had been resting her head on it for a while.

"How long have we been driving?" she whispered, her voice hoarse. The hand on her own shoulder twitched and Boba looked startled down at her. Had she truly fallen asleep?

"We have been on the road for an hour," he informed her, adjusting his arm so his cloak fell closed over her chest. An hour?! It had only felt like moments since they had gotten into the speeder. She had fallen asleep when she had hoped she wouldn't.

"Arrival in five minutes," one of the officers piped up, his voice disinterested as he eyed them. They both stared at the officer simultaneously, causing him to flinch. She looked to Boba, who looked amused now.

"You were asleep as soon as we left," he said, looking away from the officer now. His helmet was still on his knees. Had he been awake for the entire trip? Was he not even tired one bit, even after all that had happened today? However he was doing it, she wanted to know. Yawning, she looked out of the window. It was pitch black, the middle of the night now.

"What time is it even?" she asked.

"Just past two hundred hours here," an officer answered, shifting in his seat now. "We have arrived," he added shortly just as the doors opened. More guards were looking inside, looking tense.

"They are expected," a large man suddenly stepped into her view. Right… they might want to step out. She sat up to unbuckle herself, the cloak falling off her. Back into the cold….

Gritting her teeth, she waited for Boba to step out, making the nearby officers cower away from him. Kiani had told them, then, who exactly was coming. She slid out, standing right behind Boba who stared straight ahead. Tentatively she stepped beside him, crossing her arms as the warmth from inside the speeder dissipated, leaving her cold again.

A cup of hot tea would be appreciated at this point.

But… what was in front of her left her breathless. There was a wall of light in front of them. Or… a wall of light spots in the distance. Windows in the distance that were illuminated.

Vague outlines could be seen of what she could discern was a manor. She had only seen those in holo-series before. Huge manors, as large as a town on Teth, sometimes. That in front of her must be one of them. Not much else could be seen, however she was pretty sure that if they arrived during daylight her jaw would have hit the ground.

Small mercy to arrive in the dark, then? Embarrassment would be avoided, for now.

A line of guards dotted the path ahead of them. _Intimidation_. The air reeked of it. Instinctively she shifted closer to Boba, who turned his upper body slightly towards her, letting her squeeze closer to him, away from the guards. Though this time his arms remained at his sides. For some reason… she missed it. The way they weighed on her, grounding and … comforting.

Comforting? She swallowed heavily at the thought. No. Warmth was not comfort. He was not Soren, nor Master Renstan. Did it even make sense to separate them anymore? After all, Soren tried to _kill_ her, Master Renstan _abandoned_ her, and Boba? Boba kidnapped her for a bounty. What made Boba worse at this stage? Out of all of them, he at least had made sure she was well, even with the intent to deliver her to Darth Vader. That was something she'd have to worry about later. Hating him was out of the window though, so long ago too.

Kiani stepped in front of them to lead them down the path. The woman was back to being a confident commanding officer. Altharya had to roll her eyes at Kiani's back. Why was she so openly mocking towards Boba? Not really smart in any way.

Pebbles crunched underneath their boots as they moved along the path. She looked back to watch the speeder gliding away. Suddenly Boba's arm was slung around her shoulders again; she nearly jumped. She would have, if it hadn't become a regular occurrence for him to sneak up on her like that.

"Don't hesitate. You got us into this, don't show any doubt," he whispered into her ear and she looked back to the path ahead of them, refusing to meet his eyes.

He did have a point. The decision had been made, and there would be no backing out of it now. Not that she felt like the Arions would be looking to do them harm. No. Monts himself said that they would consider them allies, most likely. The least she could hope for was for relative safety for them all, her, Boba and Monts.

They reached a shallow, gently curving staircase leading to a landing with a large door at the end. The stairs looked like stone in the yellowish light from the lights on the railing. It all seemed definitely out of this world. Was she dreaming?

When they reached the huge doors, they swung open, revealing the inside. Her mouth fell open and she could not close it again. What luxury was this? How rich were the people here? This was so much grander than the Jedi temple, way off the charts of what she thought was possible. Was this… actual gold on the walls? What was this floor? Definitely stone, milky white, and it mirrored the candelabra's light above them.

She looked to Boba who looked almost… bored? Unimpressed? Rather curious. Had he seen homes that were even more grandiose? She supposed only the rich could afford his services. Maybe she could ask him later, when they settled for the night. If he'd answer that is.

As they reached the bottom of the stairs, Kiani turned around.

"You are requested to join Mr. Eric Arion in his study. Keep your arms where I can see them," she shot Boba a pointed look.

Altharya suppressed a snort. As if that precaution would stop Boba. His arm dropped from her back, leaving her unbalanced for a brief moment. She wobbled a bit, which no one seemed to notice- all eyes were on Kiani and Boba. They were both were staring each other down. Then he shrugged lazily at her, which made Kiani narrow her eyes at him in contempt. Those two… Kiani looked at her now, and a flicker of pity could be seen, before the cold officer was back.

"He is expecting you," her tone was haughty as she repeated their reason for being here. She turned away from them and started to climb the stairs ahead of them.

Altharya looked at Boba who was looking at her now. As soon as their eyes met, he quirked an amused eyebrow at her. The corners of her own lips were twitching upwards. He was enjoying messing with Kiani. Was he seriously that bored?

The walk up the stairs was quiet, her shoulders tensing more the further up they went. Her eyes were watering at the glittering decorations littered across the room and corridors. It was beautiful. Just too much. Even the carpet that lined the corridor seemed way too fine for her dusty old boots. Heck… how did one even clean all of this?

She yawned as they rounded _another_ corner. Seriously…. How deep inside were they already? Why couldn't this conversation wait until the morning? All she would produce at this point was meaningless babble.

"We are here," Kiani said curtly while stepping away from a rather plain door. Altharya had to rub her eyes to process it. Well, the door itself was not plain. It was just plain compared to the extravagance around her.

So… this was where they'd meet the leader of the Arions… the ones that ruled half a solar system.

It did not compute, at all!

She turned to Boba who still looked bored. Did he just roll his eyes? What was this? Fever dream. All this was a fever dream. Could she wake up now? It would be very much appreciated.

The door swung open and they were greeted with a dim room. Boba stepped in first, and she sighed while following him in. At least he seemed to know what he was doing. Inside, she felt like she was back on Teth in the doctor's office, surrounded by shelves packed with books, a desk with chairs crammed in the middle of it all. A small lamp provided the only light source in the room as the door fell shut behind them. Did they just let the most feared bounty hunter in without security? She blinked. That was… Guns cocked all around them.

She should have known better than to assume.

"Sit down," a male voice ordered sternly from the shadows behind the desk they were walking towards. She hesitated, but Boba seemed unperturbed, and plopped down in the chair left to her. Right. No hesitating, he said. She lowered herself cautiously into the other chair. The cushions felt so smooth underneath her fingers, and she stroked the fabric with one finger, fascinated. It was really smooth, almost like water.

Boba's hand grabbed her wrist to stop the motion. She snapped her eyes up to see him silently staring at her. Focus, he seemed to tell her. Oh. Her cheeks burned in embarrassment. Looking behind the desk, she saw a shadow move forward.

A figure stepped into the light and she met Eric Arion, the head of Arion Corporation. He was old, white hair that was cleanly shaven and combed back and his suit was probably worth more than she could ever dream of.

Nothing was said for a moment and it felt like an eternity. They regarded each other cautiously, assessing the person in front of them. Eric's eyes lingered on Boba before he looked at her.

"I heard you were the one who stabilized my granddaughter," he broke the silence bluntly as he said down, leaning his elbows on the desk, his hands resting underneath his chin.

Stabilised? Was she still alive then? Her heart soared at the hope that for once she had been able to save someone in all this death. Should she say something? Boba's grip on her arm tightened and she bit her tongue. He probably knew more about this sort of meeting than her. Hopefully she interpreted his cue right.

"You have our gratitude for your attempts," the man continued, setting one of his hands on a sheet of paper. Attempt? Did she…?

"The reason why I brought you here is to repay that debt," he emphasized, giving her a hooded glare. At least he was making sense so far. The stiffness in her shoulders lessened slightly as she released the breath that she had been holding.

"As repayment I shall grant you safety in the confines of my home," he was still looking at her and she felt the back of her neck itch underneath her collar. Oh… the collar. Everyone saw it, considering her braid was still up, even if most of the hair had fallen out. Were Force suppression collars common? Would they recognize one like hers? Boba did not twitch or flinch when she cast him a quick side-glance. Eric Arion then switched his stare from her to Boba who stared back calmly.

"I've heard about you, Mr. Fett," Eric Arion started off, making Boba raise an eyebrow at him.

"You got a bounty?" Boba deadpanned, leaning forward, and Altharya's stomach plummeted. He had seen this was going to be pleasantries towards her and negotiation for him. What she did not expect was Eric Arion breaking out in a full blown grin. The hair on her neck stood on end.

"I see I do not need to talk around. I want you to track down the would-be assassin and _kill_ _him_ ," Eric Arion's grin had completely vanished, replaced by darkness falling over his face. Would-be assassin? So the girl was not dead?

"I can do that, if given the resources," Boba replied lightly and then added, "and for the right price."

Altharya had to bite her tongue to not speak out loud. How could he demand money on the heels of a tragedy like that?

"You will work together with the team that is already working on it. But I need the _best_ ," Eric Arion almost looked smug when he conceded, "and you shall receive your payment accordingly."

"If you had heard of you me you would know my rates. My price is not negotiable," Boba fired back.

"I know your rates. I am willing to toss in a bonus should you do better than expected," Eric Arion waved a hand. Altharya nearly jumped out of the chair. The man from the market stepped forward, carrying a small box. He looked drawn, his eyes were bloodshot and… he looked like he'd fall apart into dust any moment.

"As a show of good faith, we have secured the hangar your ship is in currently and…," he took the small box and laid it in front of him on the desk, "you will reside in one of our guest quarters for your efforts for my family."

He shot her a brief glance before opening the box. Whatever she had expected, even if she even had had an, she had not expected a key.

"These are the keys to your rooms. I will have one of the servants show you the way," Eric Arion continued as the man, whose name she still did not know but knew he was the father of the little Senya, moved into the shadows again.

"Tomorrow you'll be expected to …," a man dressed in black suddenly leant forward, his sudden appearance making Altharya flinch. A squeeze to her forearm drew her attention away from it though. Right, Boba was here. She was safe. Looking back, she saw the man retreating and Eric Arion seemed to have a pensive look on his face.

"Mr. Fett, you will be expected with the security. Now you," he turned to her, "are expected with Lorena Arion. She extends her invitation to join her."

Who was Lorena Arion? Someone important but who was she in this whole structure?

"Before you are dismissed," Eric said with a tone of finality which made her sit up straighter, "your name."

Her name? They did not know her name? _How_?!

"Altharya," she answered automatically. When she stopped she somehow felt that she should have said more. At least, that was how the eyes glued to her neck, back and face felt like.

"Altharya…?" Eric Arion replied indicating… Oh. They wanted her surname. The one name she could not remember. Kine or the people in the temple never used it, nor had Master Renstan ever informed the doctor of it. Well… she could _borrow_ one.

"Altharya Struhn," she offered. The doctor's surname would have to suffice. Hopefully they only stayed for a few days before moving on again. She wasn't sure why the doctor was on Teth to begin with, but almost all people in her town were hiding from something. Would they would try and find out who she was and maybe find the town?

Hopefully she hadn't just blown a cover. But… she couldn't remember the surname given to her at birth.

"I see. A pleasure, Miss Struhn," Eric Arion rose and she felt like they had to rise too. Her knees wobbled when she lifted herself out of the chair and the rustling of cloth told her that Boba had stood up as well.

"Now, get some rest. There is work to be done," Eric Arion dismissed them and stepped away from the desk. Two heavily armoured guards stepped forward, aiming their blasters at the two of them. Altharya looked to Boba, who turned around to the direction to the door they had entered in.

The golden, soft light from the corridor filtered into the room when the door opened, and she saw the guards lining the walls. Swallowing heavily, she followed Boba into the corridor they had come from. Kiani was not there this time. She and her gaggle of officers were nowhere to be seen. Only the guards that she guessed had been standing there all along. The only person that was not in a guard uniform was a woman who seemed to be waiting for them. A servant? She wore a dress and boots that seemed to be worth more than the clothes on her back right now.

"Please follow me," she said warmly, smiling at them, a smile that reached her eyes. Genuine? She was thinking too much into this whole thing. Sleep. Good idea. She nodded to the woman, who turned and walked down the corridor to a bend.

"You are located in the guest quarters with access to the gardens," the woman started talking while they turned the corner and kept walking down a more…. Blueish themed corridor. Everything before had been red-golden. It was less extravagant as well. They walked down more stairs and more corridors until they reached a large door at the end of one. It was a white one.

The woman opened it and lights flickered on inside. Amazed, Altharya stepped inside the room, which opened up into a high ceiling. There were two beds towards the back and… was that… a vanity? A large front opposite the beds that was the closets. To her immediate left was a walled off room- the 'fresher, probably.

It was something straight out of a holo-series, and even more overwhelming. They were out of place here. Boba strode past her, briskly surveying the room, checking the large winged windows.

At least the colour was a pleasing beige. Yawning, she walked over to Boba and looked out of the window he had just left. She couldn't see far, but she saw more lights in the distance. The servant had said that they were towards the gardens.

"Close the curtains," Boba finally said, grasping the curtain on his side. _Privacy_? She was fine with that, so she walked over to the other side and pulled the curtain closed. Turning around, she saw the woman who guided them here was no longer there.

"Where did she go?"

"She probably left for her other duties," Boba explained, walking to the door and closing it.

"How do we know when to wake up?" She asked directly as she walked to one of the beds. It looked so comfy and inviting. Her fingers hovered over the blanket hesitantly before dropping it. Maybe she should scrub herself clean before touching this. A trip to the fresher, again. Not that she minded. Boba would need one too.

"They will wake us up," Boba replied finally when he stepped into the middle of the room. Silence fell over them and it itched underneath her skin at how badly she wanted the silence broken.

"So… are people like them always like that?" she blurted out, startling Boba. He turned to look at her, his face amused. Her cheeks burned. Had she made herself out to be an idiot?

"You mean super rich people?" He chuckled setting his helmet down on the vanity. It looked ridiculous where it was. The delicate framing of the mirror looked like it would burst into tiny pieces of the helmet even touched it.

"Well, yes?"

"They tend to be different, but most flaunt what they have. This is normal compared to others, believe me," he said, further loosening the clasp of his cloak. A lump formed in her throat when he remove the cloak and started folding it.

"You better get ready for sleep, we both need it," Boba commented as he stepped towards to one closet door and opened it.

Yes. He was right. She turned to the fresher, stepped inside and nearly jumped. Her own reflection stared wide eyed at her. A large mirror was in front of her with a row of two sinks.

Silly her.

Closing the door she removed her boots first, dust falling from them onto the black stone floor. She had not thought this through. In what clothes will she sleep in?

The door opened suddenly, making her whirl around. Boba looked apologetic, but held out a pile of clothes to her.

"They were kind enough to lay out some night wear for you and me," he held it closer to her and her hands grasped the bundle. So soft… and smooth.

"Thank you," she said quietly smiling openly at him. He seemed to hesitate, but then withdrew, closing the door. _Weird_.

What kind of fabric was this? Setting the bundle next to one sink, she turned on the tap. As she splashed water into her face, her thoughts wandered to the little girl who was most likely still fighting for her life. Would she be allowed to see her? Bars of soap lined the sink and they smelled so good.

What she got as she unwrapped the bundle were a shirt and pants, ones that felt like water on her skin, at least nothing too fancy. Small mercy, or mocking? Not that she cared. She had another set of clothes!

With her braid finally gone she stepped back into the room and saw Boba was already in his own nightwear, sitting on the bed closest to the window. He looked awkward, a bit lost too. They regarded each other for a moment, holding the other's eyes. _No animosity_. Good.

"The assassin will try and reach you here," Boba said looking serious again. She sighed. He was repeating himself, in essence. Why else would they be here if not because of that?

"Are you sure it was one of the Brents?" She had to ask. How had he known?

"No one else would benefit from seeing a member of the Arions dead as much as the Brents. Call it a gut feeling."

"What will happen when we catch the assassin?" She asked while climbing on top of the bed.

"What do you mean?"

"Monts said that the relations between those two families are bad as they can be. Will there be…" she had to swallow, "repercussions?"

"You mean war," he said flatly.

"Yes."

"Maybe."

"Are you not worried?"

"Once the assassin is captured, you and I will be out of here. Really fast. No meddling in any potential war," he hissed.

"If a war breaks out will we be able to leave the system at all?"

"Why do you worry?"

"Call it gut feeling," she threw him a grin, and he frowned at her. He did not see the humour in it. Fine. Sighing, she lay down facing him.

"I don't know. As I said, I have a weird feeling about all this."

"Let's hope that weird feeling won't mean disaster for us."

He laid down as well, though he was facing the ceiling.

"If we cannot get out of here in time, then we will grab Monts and hold out somewhere deep in the country."

Monts and his aid. It was a good idea. However, Monts seemed like the person who would stubbornly refuse to get to safety. She didn't know what to say, and Boba said nothing either. They just stared ahead, not really seeing anything.

But… safe from war. He had suggested keeping people he was close to safe. _What was this person_?

Then he winced.

His wound! How could she have forgotten?! She swung her legs off the bed in an instance and… oh Force, black spots. Grabbing onto the wall to stabilize herself, she pinched the bridge of her nose. Next time she had to eat more.

"Altharya?" Boba was in front of her suddenly grasping her by the shoulders.

"What is it?" he pressed further, pushing her slightly towards her bed. She was not about to faint like he was thinking.

"Your wound. I need to see to it," she mumbled pointing at the side of his stomach she had bandaged. Looking up she saw the worried expression being replaced by a startled one. As if he had not expected that one at all. How often did she have to drill it into his head that she would care about that sort of thing?

"My… wound?" He prodded her, the grasp on her shoulders tightened.

"Yes? I hadn't had a look at it ever since we landed," she argued, and it was true. He had been in a bad place, he _needed_ someone to check whether it was healing the way it should. This time he frowned.

"What are you getting out of it?"

"Nothing? Maybe not a passed out bounty hunter when an assassin is on our tail?" she snarked back.

She was tired and he was being difficult. _Nice medic façade was off, the wrestling gloves were out_. He stared back at her blankly, before his mouth twitched and his chest started shaking with suppressed laughter. It took him a moment before he could say a word. Why was he laughing? Why did it sound so disbelieving at that too?

"If you insist," he lifted the shirt he was wearing so she could see the bandages. Well… there were no bandages anymore, only a bacta patch. Which was not the one she had applied on the ship.

"You went to a proper medic?" She asked, looking at him again. Just when… oh. He must have gone when she had been passed out on the bed. Before all went to Sithspit.

"Aye."

"Good," she said while prodding around the edges of the patch. The flesh felt firm and… it had the right stiffness to it.

"It feels better. Did the medic take out the stitches?"

"Yes. He said that the stitches were well placed," he added and she felt her cheeks heat up. A compliment from another medic. That was unexpected. Warmth spread through her chest as she tested how firm the patch was attached to him. Half loose. Hm. A well applied bacta patch that was becoming loose. It was nearly done with the healing then.

By tomorrow morning they could take it off completely and he would, _should_ be fine. She withdrew her hands and clasped them together in front of her while he let his shirt fall down again.

They just stood there, watching the other, not saying a thing. Comfortable silence. He looked undecided though. As if he was searching for words. She could wait. Sleep could take a lesser priority for a minute. Moments ticked by and… nothing came. Looking up again, she saw his eyes were sad. As if he was grieving something. What was he mourning?

His hands lifted from his sides and closed around her hands. The pads of his fingertips were rough when they closed around her clasped palms. Gently and slowly he pried them from being clasped and enclosed them fully. He was warm. Really warm. The warmth was comforting, grounding.

It was confusing. She should not feel like that, especially when his thumbs brushed over the back of her hands. Heart in throat, she just watched it happen. He had kidnapped her. How often did she have to remind herself of that?

"Thank you," Boba said finally and she knew immediately he was being sincere. A smile bloomed on her face and she beamed up at him. His eyes softened and she could not look away from his eyes. It was almost like drowning. _Snap out of it_. Impossible.

She squeezed his hands back. He froze, making her stiffen in response. Had she done something wrong? Slowly he withdrew his hands and the space between them that had been so warm cooled down rapidly, leaving her unbalanced. Her heart plummeted from her throat to her gut. He was back on his bed, sliding underneath the blankets while she still stood there.

"Sleep."

Her chest twinged at the cold tone, as if her lungs had deflated. What was going on?

Right. Sleep. They were both tired, whatever just happened meant nothing. This was just their minds playing games with them. Once they woke tomorrow they would be back to how they were.

She plopped down on the bed, her face smashed into the pillow making her release a groan. Why was this all so complicated? Shuffling, she shoved her legs underneath the blankets and as soon as she did the lights went out.

Who shut the lights off? Boba? Yeah… must have been him. Then sleep finally took and this time she had a restful sleep.

* * *

 **AN: I am pushing this out sooner than I thought, cause the schedule on my part is really tight for the next two weeks. As the last couple of chapters before, SapphiraBlue is an awesome beta (on AO3) and the next chapter is still being beta read.**

 **Please review, the response has kind of dried up over the last few chapters and I am wondering if you guys didn't like something?**


	11. Chapter 11

Altharya stood awkwardly next to the servant who had picked her up in the morning, a stone-faced young man who only lifted his nose as she stepped out into the corridor. Given that she was only gifted nightwear, she had to wear the clothes from yesterday again. She knew she stank of sweat and blood. Shrugging at the servant with a sheepish smile, he sighed and motioned for her to follow him.

"Miss Lorena will be taking her breakfast in her room. It will be a private affair," his voice was nasal and she wondered whether he had a throat dysfunction forcing him to speak that way. She only nodded, choosing to remain silent. Somehow she had the feeling that if she opened her mouth that the man in front of her would only disapprove of any word that left her mouth. Now, what relation was Lorena to the head of this family? She still didn't know, and she had been biting her tongue the entire time they were walking down the corridors.

The mansion had been deserted when they had arrived late night, except for the multitude of guards. But now? The guards were practically swallowed in a flurry of activity of richly dressed people who either rushed past her, making her jump out of the way or… given how the hair on her neck rose sometimes, just plain and openly stared. It must be the collar. Was slavery lawful in this system? No… it couldn't be the collar; for once her braid had been loosened and her hair pretty much disguised it.

Her attire, then. She probably looked like a beggar to them. Did they even know? Though… they seemed to know about the little girl. Murmurs of sympathy and grief could be heard when she was shepherded around corners and through doors.

They stopped near a door in the red and golden themed corridors. The man waved for her to wait a footstep behind him as he knocked three times. A short pause; she looked at her nails. There were some dirt trapped under them. If she only had a few more minutes after she had been thrown out of bed by a certain impatient servant… she glowered at the man.

"Come in," a feminine voice called from inside and the man stepped aside, opening the door.

Soft daylight hit her face as she stepped inside, into a huge chamber, larger than her own room. Larger even than the rooms in the Jedi temple. She was so stunned that her mouth didn't even fall open as she craned her neck to look how high the ceiling went. Two stories, at least, with a crystal candelabra in the middle. The walls had winged windows all around with a view into a blooming garden. Were those coloured glass panes?

A small group of maids were flitting around the centre. But her eyes landed on the one girl that must be Lorena, who seemed to be about her age. She was talking to another maid quietly before turning around to her with a swishing of white golden silk skirts across the stone floor, the same kind of milky white stone as outside. Lorena walked towards her, a smile that reached her eyes greeting her.

"Welcome, Altharya Struhn," she greeted Altharya and stretched out a hand.

Altharya eyed the hand for a moment, her hand lifted halfway, hesitating. She was technically still dirty and dusty. How could this lady treat her as an equal? When Lorena tilted her head to the side looking at her questioningly she finally took her hand to shake it. Lorena's grasp was firm, but not dominating either. Somehow she wanted to dip herself into a tank of sanitiser now given how pristineeverything was; she was just poor.

"Thank you for your hospitality," she forced some platitudes through her teeth, which seemed glued shut.

Lorena regarded her for a second before looking at her maids who seemed to be done with whatever they were setting up, their hands falling to their sides again.

"You can leave us," she ordered which made the girls curtsy, echoing "Ma'am," before filing out of the room by the door Altharya had come through.

Her shoulders slumped when the last girl was out and the door fell shut. The metal of Lorena's headpiece tinkled when she looked back at Altharya.

"I thought you would be more comfortable if we were alone," Lorena said while waving towards a table the maids had been swarming around.

"Thank you," Altharya said. The lady was observant and considerate, it seemed. Hopefully she did not have some sort of agenda.

"Please sit down, you are, after all a guest," another smile, and Lorena stepped around the table to stand next to the chair. Now Altharya saw the food. Water flooded her mouth and she swallowed heavily as she carefully sat down opposite Lorena.

"You seem apprehensive," Lorena commented while tipping a small teapot to pour herself a cup of steaming tea. It smelled lemony and for once she felt like something of her home on Teth had returned.

"I have never seen anything like this before," she answered truthfully, looking at the plate and cutlery in front of her. Lorena looked sympathetic at the admission, leaning over to pour Altharya a cup.

"I cannot blame you. A lot of guests are overwhelmed when they first come and those are the ones who also live in luxury," she explained as Altharya's hands closed around the delicate cup, soaking in the warmth of the hot liquid inside.

"I have spent most of my time training to be a medic inside a clinic, this is… a whole other world," Altharya said. Lorena now looked curious.

"A medic? A noble goal. One I could never hope to pursue," she answered while grabbing an orange fruit from a basket, and started peeling it.

Now it made sense. Her life was dedicated to the family corporation and by virtue the running of the planet. Just what could she even say to that? She grabbed an apple from the basket, the only fruit she recognized from it.

"A medic's job is not always glorious," she elaborated. Maybe it would serve Lorena some comfort, should she have wished to become one. Lorena giggled. Altharya raised a stunned eyebrow.

"I appreciate your kindness, however I am content with the life I have now," she smiled at Altharya before taking a bite. They chewed in companionable silence.

"I wish to thank you for trying to save my sister's life yesterday," Lorena whispered quietly suddenly and Altharya nearly dropped her apple slice at how sad the lady sounded. Sister? So… she must be the granddaughter of the current leader!

"I only did my duty..." Altharya had no idea what else to say. This was… she should have expected it. A family member would always thank her for her efforts.

"I know you did, but a lot of people are scared to interfere in this… feud ," Lorena sighed before taking a sip from her cup. Somehow Altharya knew that she probably should not mention that she had no idea that there had been a feud. If it would have affected the outcome was debatable.

"I heard about that," she commented while looking at the cheese platter.

"Still, you helped, and we are eternally grateful. Senya has a fighting chance because of you."

Fighting chance? That meant the girl was fighting still. Somehow she dreaded asking. But she needed to know, needed to affirmation that her efforts were bearing fruit.

"How is she?"

"She is suspended in a bacta tank. But… the doctors are unsure, they did all they could. Her body might not be able to recover even with the bacta."

"Children heal incredibly fast," Altharya tried to give her some comfort or solace.

"I sincerely hope she can."

This time she bit her tongue to comment further. Lorena did not need uncertainty- it would not help her grief, nor would it earn her any favours either. So she kept silent.

"Do you wish to see her?" Lorena suddenly asked and Altharya snapped her head up in surprise. Truly?

"I… Yes, of course."

"Once we are done with eating, I will…" Lorena gave her a once-over and the back of her neck heated up, "give you some more appropriate attire. I take it that you felt like a sore thumb?"

Altharya just nodded and just wanted to shrink into the chair. Was it that bad that she was dressed in the clothing of a poor citizen? Would even these social circles understand that concept?

"It is not necessary…"

"I insist. Take it as gratitude and…" she leaned forward now a cool look on her face.

"I know you are a slave."

What? A slave? Her ?! What gave her that idea? She nearly dropped the cup onto a plate in shock.

"I… What?" She stuttered out and Lorena sighed.

"Slavery is illegal in this system. That collar can be removed," Lorena offered and… Altharya slumped back in her seat. Remove the collar. All offered to her on a silver platter.

"We did not make it a big deal back then as you two were the reason why we have Senya still alive and a solid lead on the assassin. However, you cannot stay a slave," Lorena explained further.

Now… should she tell Lorena it was a Force suppression collar? Not a slave collar? Though somehow she felt that by telling her that it was not a slave collar the Empire would find out where she was. Laying low, Boba had said.

"Thank you, it was becoming a bit itchy," she threw a grin at Lorena whose eyes widened at the joke and then burst into a laughing fit.

"We will get along well then, I see," she gasped after she finally composed herself. Now Altharya was not too sure about it. She had just met Lorena!

They continued eating while chatting amicably until Altharya had gathered the courage to ask why she had been invited here specifically. After all safety was a debt repaid, in her mind.

"It is tradition actually," Lorena seemed startled at the question, but she seemed willing to explain further, "My family would invite benefactors to reside here, or, in your case, to ensure your safety."

"Tradition?"

"It has been…," Lorena looked up as if to think, "five centuries now since my family had been ruling this system. A habit kind of becomes a tradition if practiced long enough."

"How often do you do that?"

"Before… you know," Lorena seemed uncomfortable for a moment. Not that Altharya could blame her. They were technically still strangers. So she continued listening, "we used to invite someone weekly to reside with us for a while. Now my grandfather has put an indefinite stop to it until the assassin is caught."

It made sense. Close down the access to the manor and ensure that no one from outside could get in. Hopefully it worked. It was nice to know that this was relative safety for now; no assassin to worry about, only Boba. Though he was an entirely different issue to begin with, which was morphing into something she did not quite know how to deal with.

"Did you enjoy it?"

Lorena looked surprised at the question with both eyebrows raised.

"I did. I worry my grandfather will get rid of the tradition even after the assassin is caught," she suddenly whispered and Altharya had to strain her ears to catch what she said.

"Do you think he will?"

"My grandfather loves us and sometimes goes overboard on our safety," Lorena said worriedly and- was that an undertone of annoyance? Altharya frowned. He let two complete strangers into his home. He let Boba kriffing Fett inside . Regardless of what she had done in their eyes.

"He let Boba Fett into his home," she deadpanned and Lorena winced in return.

"I was not informed of his reasons. But Boba Fett is a bounty hunter. They all have a price and we are not exactly without the means to provide it," she elaborated.

Somehow… it felt like it was the whole reason. Though, Altharya held her tongue.

"I suppose it worked out in the end," she said instead.

"I am glad it did."

Altharya regarded Lorena for a moment. She seemed kind and open, not at all like rich girls were portrayed in those holo-series. It was too early to be proven wrong, after all, this all could be a façade still. Though… she wanted to trust her. Maybe have a friend? She bit the inside of her cheek. They would only be here for a few days, then she'd never see Lorena again. She was being foolish.

"Are you done?" Lorena asked suddenly, motioning to Altharya's empty plate. She looked down and her stomach did not growl at the sight of the remaining food.

"Yes."

"Come," Lorena stood up, the silk of her dress billowing around her like a cloud.

"Are we going to Senya?" Altharya asked while also getting up, causing Lorena to frown at her. Somehow she felt self-conscious for asking now.

"I have another gift before we go," Lorena said carefully, "You came with no spare clothes, I was told."

Oh yeah… that. How as she to explain that she was not poor but the lack of clothes was circumstantial? What would Boba do if he knew she had told anyone about her kidnapping? They'd be gone in a flash and all who knew dead. No. She'd stay quiet about this.

But how many gifts would be thrown her way? There must be a drawback. Otherwise… it would make no sense. She was missing something. Was it considered polite to reject a gift?

"I have a few old dresses you might fit into," Lorena looked pensively at her as they walked towards another staircase leading up to a different level. Did she have a house inside a house?

"And then we can get rid of this… thing," she spat with so much venom that Altharya could only blink at her. What thing? She followed Lorena's eyes and… Oh right, she had said it would be removed.

Boba would have no chance to slap it on her again, not in view of everyone, and he would have no access to another suppression collar. Unless he went directly to Eric Arion. No, he wouldn't do that, since it would mean giving away why she was with him. But then again, Boba was unpredictable as it was.

"Why does Boba Fett even have a slave?" Lorena continued to spit in contempt.

Maybe it was best Lorena did not meet Boba. Somehow she had the feeling that Lorena would yell at Boba about her being a 'slave'.

They reached a room that was just closet doors. Altharya's jaw fell open. So many closets…. How many dresses did this woman have?

"Why do you have so many?" she blurted out. She snapped her eyes to Lorena, who looked at her blankly. Then for the second time she burst into pealing laughter.

"Believe me, I cannot wear all of them. However, if there are functions, I cannot wear the same dress twice. Don't ask me who came up with that rule."

Lorena opened a closet and started rummaging through it as Altharya stood awkwardly in the middle of the room.

"Hmm… For today… Medbay, walk in the garden… oh, also, you are asked to dine with my family tonight with Boba," she suddenly said while turning around with a blue delicate looking bundle of cloth in her hand. Speaking of schedule…

"Where is Boba? Do you know?" Altharya asked and Lorena set the bundle onto a stool in the corner of the room.

"I know that he is with the security officers trying to figure out how to catch our assassin."

"Why am I not being involved?"

"Because what you know my father and Boba already know. So we decided not to involve you yet."

Yet? That meant the option was still open though.

"I see."

"There is a mirror," Lorena pointed to a large mirror that was next to the stool, "in case you want to do something with your hair."

Altharya only nodded numbly as Lorena stepped outside.

"When you are done we can go," she had said gleefully, closing the door.

That girl had nerve… but fine. She would wear a borrowed dress and spend the day with her, even with an assassin on the loose. At least she'd finally be free to sense the Force around her again. Her hands were trembling at the anticipation.

Right, get dressed and do her braid again.

It took her half an hour to get ready. Not because she had no idea how to dress herself or braid her hair, no. But because of how how she looked in the end. The dress did not fit her perfectly at all, but it was better than some clothes she had worn before. At least it did not have a train for her to trip over, but the hem did reach her feet and… she did not know how to feel about it.

The only thing that threw her off was the collar. She had to draw a deep breath to steel herself. Outside was Lorena with her chance to get rid of the blasted thing and maybe have a nice day. To not worry about assassins, Boba, or escaping. Somehow it felt wrong even without the Force. Something was building up.

She stepped outside where Lorena was busy talking to a small girl in servant clothing.

"I will be gone for the next couple of hours. Make sure the rooms are cleaned by then," the servant girl nodded and left with a small curtsy.

"I am ready," Altharya announced herself making Lorena turn around.

"Alright. You should not be getting any dirty looks for now," Lorena said with a small and rather smug smile. She was enjoying this.

"I do not mind."

Lorena only pinched her lips at the reply. Altharya froze slightly. Had she said something wrong? Carefully she watched Lorena's face for any indication that she was offended.

"Where did you grow up?"

"I grew up on Teth," when Lorena looked at her blankly still, Altharya continued to clarify, "it is in Imperial space."

"That would explain why you have a slave collar," Lorena sighed, "Well let's go to the med-bay. I am sure you want to see Senya and get rid of it."

"Yes, please."

They walked side by side down the winding corridors… she should really start memorizing them. She was already lost if asked where they were. If she could just get a map of this place, she would be fine. Though, would it be impolite to ask for a map?

Lorena was explaining the murals on the ceilings and walls and she should really listen. A map could always wait for later.

"We put important events into murals and display them on our walls and roofs while a museum in Ebonyo has the original copies," Lorena pointed to a small mural tucked in between two large paintings. Where was she supposed to look? All of it seemed significant in their own way.

"This mural commemorates the abolishing of slavery four hundred years ago," Lorena said and Altharya squinted to look at the detail. They had stopped walking and she looked at the tiny stones that were so intricately arranged in a variety of colours. Well- half of the mural was in colour, the other half was in gray and blacks. A Rishii and a human could be seen holding hands in the colour, but in the gray portion, they faced each other, arms raised as if in fight. She did not need a historian to tell her what it meant. So the Rishii had been slaves?

"The original is much larger and more detailed in its original form."

"Why was it not made like the original?"

"Father says that it is because the most important murals are repeated throughout the house and hence the artists shrank it and omitted details."

"How many of those murals do you have?"

Lorena opened her mouth and then promptly closed it, a hand on her chin and her brows furrowed in deep thought.

"Hang on…"

They started walking again, this time in silence while Lorena was thinking.

"I can think of three at the moment."

"What are they about?"

"One is about the arrival of our civilization to this star system two thousand years ago. How my family got to power and… our separation."

"Separation?"

Lorena sighed and linked one of her arms through Altharya's steering her around a corner to a green coloured corridor.

"The family that got to power five hundred years ago was named Brenion. When slavery was abolished, the family split in two. Arion and Brent."

Oh. That made so much more sense now. But why was there open animosity? She remembered Monts saying as much when he had ranted about her choosing a side publicly. A family wouldn't want to tear the other out of existence. Right? Was she missing something?

She was definitely missing something. There was a feud. Lorena had said it herself back when they had still been eating. Just why? What was the root of it all?

"I heard…"

"That we are in a cold war? You heard correctly," Lorena sneered into empty space. She had said something wrong. The angry scowl on Lorena's face nearly made her pull her arm out from being intertwined with Lorena's. Her muscles didn't react, though.

"I am sorry," she apologized hastily, her stomach knotted anxiously. What would happen if she had offended her?

After a brief moment, the scowl fell off Lorena's face.

"Let's not talk about this anymore. We are going to see Senya, who really does not need us moping around."

Altharya nodded, holding back a snort. It was a good intention, though she seriously doubted whether they moped or not when they were inside would matter. The girl was probably in a coma recovering, or still fighting for recovery. Hopefully she'd make it . The Force couldn't be that cruel.

It could be. Remember… Kine … Shaking her head in thought, they stopped in front of a large door, one that was not decorated, but made of plain steel.

"Are you alright?"

Altharya snapped her head up and met Lorena's concerned gaze. Was she that obvious? Damn. She must get better at disguising her emotions. No one should be dragged into the mess that was her life. Think of something. Think .

"I am… just glad I will be rid of this collar," she said and deflated internally when Lorena gave an understanding nod. Altharya breathed a sigh of relief when Lorena turned around and palmed the door open with a whoosh. At least it had convinced her for now… But was she going to say when her senses came rushing back? Say she was overwhelmed that it was gone? Surely no one would buy that?

"Come on," with that she was tugged inside and instantly felt like she was transported back to Teth. The white walls, the sterilized air, the bustling of people… All was so familiar to the clinic on Teth she wanted to burst out in tears.

Get a grip! Not here !

She was being selfish… Thinking about feeling the Force again. Not about the small Senya who was somewhere, fighting, and she could not even spare more than a mere thought for her. Maybe she was like the Jedi. Selfish, genocidal… her hands were shaking now. Drawing several deep breaths, she looked around.

It was different from Teth. The people who were bustling around were doctors, not patients. Everything was so white, pure white, not the old, faded white. The man hurrying to meet them was not the white haired doctor, but a stern faced brown and silver haired man with pinched lips.

"Miss Arion, we did not expect you," he panted when he reached them.

"I am sorry, Dr. Tomo," Lorena greeted him by inclining her head while he flustered at the gesture.

"Do you wish to see your sister?"

"Yes please. How is she?"

"She is neither better nor worse," Dr. Tomo finally noticed Altharya and the scowl returned.

"Who are you?" He asked snidely looking her up and down. She shuffled her feet. Struhn had not ever talked down on anyone, even the ones who got up in his face about their supposedly 'better' knowledge of surgery.

"This is Altharya Struhn," Lorena replied for her with an eye roll, "She is the one who managed to stabilize Senya enough for the transport."

Dr. Tomo's nose seemed to rise to the ceiling and the hair on Altharya's neck rose. Was he aiming to kiss the ceiling?

"So," he sounded constipated all of the sudden. What was his problem, she frowned at him now, "you were the one."

Haughty elitist… She scowled at him. Somehow she already knew what was going to be said. How could someone who had no university medical training understand blaster wounds? Fine. Bring it. It was no worse than she had dealt with already. Angry bounty hunters and all.

"Yes," she said curtly, steeling herself for the inevitable blow exchange.

"Hmpf, you have our thanks for doing just about enough," he sounded as if he wanted to swallow his tongue more than thanking her. Lorena glared hard at him. Was this normal? Cause…

Hang on. Just 'about enough'?! That… ugh. What else was she supposed to do? Conjure bacta out of nowhere? For what she was given, she had made do with what was there. He could look down on her all he wanted. Senya had survived so far nonetheless.

"Dr. Tomo, I had hoped to see my sister. Today ."

"Of course. My apologies. Follow me please."

Dr. Tomo turned around and walked briskly in front of them. Men and their pride… Her scowl felt etched onto her face and not even the apologetic squeeze of Lorena's hand on her arm made it go away. No. She would not let this slide. Who did this person think he was to just walk all over her? Oh no. Dr. Struhn had made her of tougher stuff. Heck, she had brawled with a rowdy patient before so they'd finally let them operate. Her nails were digging into her palms now and she had to relax the fists her hands had become. How had Lorena not complained yet?

They walked past doors with name tags on them with the occasional member of staff peeking out as they walked past. How many doctors did they need? Who needed that many? On Teth only herself and Dr. Struhn had been enough.

Oh Force. Swallowing she thought of how many people there must be just living here. Did they work here too? Dr. Tomo stopped abruptly and opened a door, holding it open for them to step through. Altharya avoided looking at him, instead she lifted her nose up like he did earlier. Glee spread through her chest and she had to bite her inner lip to stop herself from smirking.

Any thoughts of glee or pettiness vanished when she saw the bacta tank in the middle of the room, connected with tubes and monitors steadily beeping away.

To say the clinic on Teth was primitive compared to this setup was… just an insult to the technology that was here. Even the bacta tank there hadn't been connected to that many monitors.

Force! They even had a blood sugar level meter! And another… was that a portable MRI? She and Struhn had been desperately scrambling credits together to get one of those for years! Heck, even after five years they had only reached the halfway mark for a black market one. With her gone… What would Struhn do? Hopefully he was alright. Hopefully he wasn't searching for her, even if it was something he'd do.

A small body was suspended in the tank and she nearly did not recognize the small girl she had tried to help. Had that been just a day ago? It felt like years. Senya looked small and frail, her tiny fingers moving with the flowing bacta.

The burn mark nearly made her gasp in horror. Slapping a hand over her mouth, she stared at the black ugly mark, no, hole, that was stretched from Senya's shoulder to the middle of her ribcage. How had she not lost her limbs yet? Any blood supply would be disturbed if the aorta was damaged. Her stomach sank to her knees. That wound hadn't been that large when she had been yanked away, the tissue had died away far too fast over the course of a day. Catastrophic did not even begin to cover it. There was no hope, they were all kidding themselves if they thought this could be salvaged.

The Force was cruel .

She looked over to Lorena who was looking to the ground, her fingers on Altharya's arm digging into the fabric of the borrowed dress. Seeing a family member dying slowly in front of them and even if they threw the most advanced medicine at it, they could only watch. The feeling of helplessness was crippling, she knew that. Had felt it, had seen it… Right, stop there. No need to go back. Focus on the here and now.

But looking anywhere but the dying girl in front was better. She lifted her hand away and gripped Lorena's hand, giving it a comforting squeeze. Even they were strangers, a comforting gesture sometimes meant the world to grieving people. Lorena's fingers were limp, but twitched when she squeezed them.

"Thank you," mumbled Lorena who had tilted her head to look at Altharya sideways. Altharya could only smile back. Maybe it was best if she did not say anything about how little hope she had for Senya, little to none. Though… it was not what Lorena needed. She had to suppress a snort when she heard the awkward shuffle of feet behind her. Dr. Tomo. What did he want? He must know how bleak this was. How much time had they bought her? A week at least?

She looked at the displayed monitors. Where was the brain activity one? As steadily as possible, so Lorena did not notice anything, she tried to discern where the most important monitor was.

Interesting .

It was not there. She looked to Lorena again who… her heart sank, was looking openly at her little sister's burnt chest. Now… where was this Doctor. Steadily and slowly she turned her head to look squarely at Dr. Tomo. Now what was he thinking? She glowered at him while he met her eyes steadily. He knew she knew. His reasons were going to be interesting, if he decided to indulge her. Lorena shifted beside her so she turned to look at her again.

"I think we should move on," Lorena said quietly. Her voice was forcibly composed, the tremble could be heard choking down her throat. Poor girl. How often did she have to conceal and bury it all deep down? She only nodded and Lorena turned around to Dr. Tomo who now had a sympathetic look on his face now. Something heavy was pressing on her shoulders and the air was thick. Anticipation? Grief?

Was this all just to let them all hold onto hope? To let them deny it until the girl could only breathe and eat through a machine? What then? Never turn off the machine?

"Is there something else you need?" Dr. Tomo asked, trying to stifle the tension. Lorena subtly tugged her forward and pointed to the collar. His expression never changed. Not even a twitch. What was he thinking? Did he know what it was exactly? Or did he assume it was what Lorena thought as well? Hopefully it was the latter.

"If you could remove this please," Lorena commanded, her tone under control now.

No subtle vibrations or anything to indicate how she might feel. Dangerous. She needed to watch out what she said to Lorena. Who knew with strangers? Even if that stranger felt compelled to free her, just not in the way they all thought.

Dr. Tomo nodded and motioned for them to walk out the door. Outside he lead them to a smaller room with a medical examination bed in the middle.

She wanted to see Boba's face now when he realized the collar would be off. The collar was coming off! Her chest felt lighter, as did her feet, the closer she walked to the bed. Had she sped up? Lorena was no longer at her side, but was closer to the door. No she had just stopped. How had she not noticed?

No matter. The collar was getting off and Boba would have no backup to slap on her again! She clasped her hands in front of her to stop them from trembling. Let them think she was being emotional about being freed. All it mattered that it was off and she could…

Cold gloves touched the side of neck and she shuddered.

"Relax," Dr. Tomo said neutrally while prodding around the edges of the collar. Fine, she let her shoulders drop and she felt a finger tracing the back of her neck now. Something cracked and… air touched skin that hadn't felt it anymore and… she had to grip the edge of the bed to brace herself for the full force her senses came back with leaving her winded.

Oh, Force . She would never get used to this. Senses slamming back into her skull, leaving a dull throb. Her vision was swimming and she had to close them, trying to block out the colours that swirled around.

Breathe in .

Breathe out .

This was just a moment's confusion. Nothing more. Slowly she opened her eyes again, letting her mind settle, to reach out as she had for so many years.

Her gut clenched as did her heart when she felt the grief emanating from all around her. It was heavy, constricting her lungs. She had to withdraw, close her mind. Had she become more sensitive? That hadn't happened on Teth. Should she wait for a few days before attempting again? Her forehead was pounding. Damn. Sleep would not come easy tonight.

"Are you alright?" Lorena's voice suddenly caught through the haze that her head was swimming in. Her voice was stuck in her throat and she had to swallow several times before answering.

"I am fine," she winced at how uncertain she sounded. Pull yourself together . They cannot know!

"I suggest fresh air. Sometimes these collars can be nasty," Dr. Tomo suddenly commented nonchalantly and she snapped her head up.

Ow . Bad decision, she had to pinch the bridge of her nose to keep the lights and colours contained.

Had she heard right? He could not know! Maybe slave collars were nastier than she herself knew. Right, just roll with it. If no one questioned, then she would not point it either.

"I was scheduled to go to the gardens anyways," Lorena answered, suddenly standing in front of her. Would people please stop teleporting around? She had a hard enough time keeping track if what she was sensing was part of what everyone could see and not the Force.

"Will you be alright?" The question directed towards her sounded so sincere and… the warmth that spread through her limbs through the Force was oh so comforting. Lorena was being earnest in this question.

How did Force-blind people deal with this?

She looked up and saw Lorena smiling kindly down at her.

Maybe trusting her was not too bad of an idea. So she smiled back, even if it felt like her muscles were leaden when the corners of her mouth lifted.

"Come. The gardens are not far from here," small hands snuck under her elbows and she felt herself getting up.

The walk out of the medical center was quiet and her stomach kept swooping high and low, making her grit her teeth. Grief kept poking around her mind's walls, trying to needle in.

As soon as they stepped out the onslaught grew weaker, until it was just a tiny fluttering. Lorena. She couldn't change that, nor should she. Letting people grieve was healthy according to Struhn. Only when they grieve to the point of only living because of it… that was when they as medics had to step in sometimes, if possible.

"Are you glad that collar is off?" Lorena asked, sounding curious.

"It is," she had to find the word without lying to her, "liberating."

It fit and she answered it so Lorena kept thinking she had been a slave. She looked over to Lorena who had a pensive look.

"You know I wonder why the infamous bounty hunter Boba Fett needs a slave," she asked slowly and somehow Altharya had the feeling that Lorena had been chewing on this for a while now.

Oh Force how would she answer this one? Say the truth? Kidnapped? A kidnapped slave. How would that even make sense? Who kidnapped slaves? Escaped slave and she was being collected? No no, then them being here made no sense. Anything to make Boba seem less… evil. He didn't deserve being yelled at by someone for something he hadn't actually done, even if it made a funny picture. A kidnapped slave and no opportunity to get rid of the collar?

"I… he took me from the one who owned me as a slave," she explained and had to prevent herself from cringing. Lying tasted bitter. Bah.

"I see," Lorena sounded unsure and her brows were knitted together in thought, "I suppose he is not as bad then."

"No, he is not," Altharya answered truthfully and her thoughts wandered to Boba. What was he doing right now? How did one track an assassin? What time was it even? Noon?

Had he eaten?

Changed that patch?

Had it healed enough?

They reached a large winged door that swung open and her mouth fell open again at the beauty that spread out in front of her. Green bushes sprinkled with blue, pink and all the colours that one could imagine sprinkled in between. The Force pulsed so strongly around her. So much life. How had she never felt that on Teth? Now if the answer was easy, that would be great.

But anything that was related with the Force was riddled with complications.

A light giggle made her snap her mouth shut.

"Our gardens have that effect on most visitors," Lorena smirked as she steered her along a small stone path further into the garden.

She only half-listened, turned her head around at the sound of birds chirping, the occasional rustling in the depths of bushes. Not to mention the smells, all so sweet and flowery, making her feel as if she were floating. Would anyone notice if she just buried herself somewhere and let go? It sounded like heaven to her.

"My favourite is the glass houses with the more exotic plants," Lorena pushed her slightly onto another path that opened up to a large green house that sparkled in the sunlight. Exotic plants? Wasn't Lorena supposed to be here anyways?

"Why do you need to be here?"

"The gardener said he wanted to show me something. I hope it is the Latun finally blooming, that stubborn plant refused to last year. You should see how big the petals get. Larger than my head!" Lorena gushed as she opened the door walking inside. Altharya set to follow, but as soon as she stepped inside the calm of being outside vanished and… Her heart just felt like someone pricked it with a pin. She hesitated and waited.

Nothing. It didn't happen again.

This was the Force being strange. Or was it just her body being unaccustomed to the Force and adjusting to it again? Must be it, as her heart settled again and tranquility washed over her. She was just out of whack. Lorena did not let her dwell on the strange pins and needles in her chest as she pulled her towards a large pot with a light green plant in it.

"We imported this one…." Lorena paused for a moment to think, "from Naboo a few years ago. It is still growing to maturity."

She sounded disappointed. What about? That it didn't grow fast enough? Altharya looked closer at the tall stem with leaves wrapped tightly around it. What was supposed to be so grand about it? Somehow Lorena seemed to practically vibrate next to her from giddiness.

A needle was suddenly driving through her forehead. Ow… What? Force, for once… calm down! They were in the most secure part of the entire planet! There could…. Kriff. Another stab through her heart left her flinching violently. Clutching a hand over her head, she drew in several short breaths. Her eyes flit around the plants around them. Leaves and petals were moving, as if waving to her. Was she sensing danger? She looked around while Lorena had knelt down to inspect… whatever. Rubbing her forehead she looked outside. Since when was the green so dark and… her stomach swooped low and she had to press a hand over her nose to keep her from doubling over. Menacing? What was going on? Her hands were trembling.

Get out of here .

Where to?

Her feet were rooted in place, as her lungs began prickling. The air shifted, the breeze that had wafted around them now felt like a howling monster. Goosebumps spread all across her arms when the temperature dropped around her. Her skin felt like bugs were crawling underneath it… she had to shudder.

"I wonder where the gardener is. He should be around," Lorena suddenly said snapping her out of her trance. A missing gardener. The prickling stopped for the brief moment she held her breath in shock, only to ram themselves full Force into every organ inside of her.

A trap !

* * *

 **AN: Hopefully you enjoyed the chapter! Please tell me what you liked or disliked, I do endeavor to improve :P  
SapphiraBlue (on Archiveofourown) betaed this chapter and is an awesome person as usual. **

**_RavenHairedQueen_ : Thank you for reviewing, glad you are liking it so far!**


	12. Chapter 12

Boba regarded the nervous security man in front of him coolly. The twitching of the man's hands was starting to annoy him. Who hired this guy? Even the Hutt guards were less twitchy when he was around. Kriff, even Altharya shook less than any of the men in this room. His fist clenched when he thought about her. A servant had practically thrown her out of bed and issued the demands of Lorena Arion. Without him.

He should have gone with them, but then again he wanted that assassin out of the way fast more. Then he and Altharya would be out of this circus of pretentiousness. Why Monts had chosen this specific system was beyond him. Semantics? That old bounty hunter had been eccentric back then; retirement had not changed it.

Darth Vader better accept his rate rise… Who would have known that Altharya would plunge them both headfirst into an intra-solar conflict?! He was not paid enough for this. He should have cuffed her, left her in that room, grabbed some pads from the shelves and they might have avoided all of it. Maybe they would have spent a few days trapped in the city on lockdown with Monts. All in all, not the worst situation to be in.

But nooo, his leniency got them into this mess, and now Altharya was Mandalore-knew-where. He shouldn't have forgotten that she had been a Jedi once. It had been easy, though, with the way she looked at him sometimes. That apology… and her treating him. A mess, an utter stinking pile of akk dog poodoo. She was with Lorena Arion, but who knew what that little politician was up to. Not that the collar would be less obvious.

Fine. He would play along. An extra bag of money couldn't hurt them with the rate Altharya was proving to be a trouble seeker. He looked at the guard again, who was now shooting fearful glances to the others scattered around, doing their own tasks.

"Do you have anything of use to say?" Boba said lowly and the man, more or less still a boy, blanched snow white and stuttered.

"No."

"Then why are you bothering me?"

The boy swallowed and rushed off to another officer, who turned around, surprised to see the other practically hiding behind him now.

Great. This was just great. They had lost a lead, the one lead he had gotten them. How did one corrupt a blood sample?! Did he have to do everything here? He expected a pay raise. He turned around to Kiani, who stuck her nose up as soon as he leveled his stare on her. She was arrogant; even Altharya had found it amusing. Altharya, of all people! Hopefully Lorena had more competent security that would also look out for her, considering he had been taken out of the equation.

Why did he always have to keep his hands on this girl to keep her from either bolting or getting yanked? Jetii…. As flighty as water or air.

"Anything of use?" He asked Kiani, keeping his tone cold. No taunting, for now….

"The blood sample was in our custody before it was corrupted," she replied, sounding almost bored.

Hm. A mole. This might be fun. It must be someone who was in this house right now, given it was on lockdown. How had this assassin managed to go from the city, to their hotel room, and then to a highly secured mansion? The only explanation was either a highly prepared and connected assassin, or an entire network that was set up at key positions. It would explain how the blood sample had gotten corrupted with a DNA-destroying solution. Security cameras had also been scrambled and the door locks had their history of identification cards wiped. He could deal with it.

If they let him near the computers, the only thing they gave him, grudgingly, was a layout of the place. At least that meant he could monitor Altharya's movement from inside his helmet. From what he could see, she hadn't moved far from the family quarters. Good. No trouble so far except for her getting roped further into this mess, which he didn't quite put past her.

"So you are admitting one of your own people is trying to murder the Arions?"

"Yes," her lips twisted in disgust at the admission, as if it tasted bitter. He counted it as a victory.

"And you are not letting me do my job... why, again?"

Kiani sighed and explained for the fifth time in the span of a morning that he was an outside and that giving him access was a bigger breach of security protocol for the future than they could afford. But having an assassin running around in their home was acceptable? Why did some people think that making his job more difficult was going to help?

"What am I supposed to do then?" He asked. Hopefully they could point out something for him to do, other than standing around in a room with security guards flitting to and fro. The most trusted ones were allowed in here. Though, Boba snorted, much good it did with the blood sample. The assassin knew how to scramble the locks. No amount of restrictions in access was going to do much. Any comment on his part would only get him a lower pay out, though.

"You are to watch the videos of the cameras that we can salvage, which-" Kiani glowered at the backs of a few men and women whose hands were flying across keys. Slicers, he assumed. "-should not take long."

"Right…" he drawled, turning to watch the stiff shoulders of their slicers.

Not long? They'd been at it for the entire morning, wasting his time and potentially endangering Altharya further. He could still grab her and hide somewhere with this confusing girl. That was what she was: confusing. One moment she was the bounty and then suddenly… she wasn't. Not with the way her skin felt underneath his touches; it hadn't gotten any better when she had apologized to him.

Distance was good for now.

Who would have thought that a bounty would mess around with the memories he'd so carefully tucked away? No matter; after a few months he could take up bounties again and she'd be a long-gone memory. If only Darth Vader hadn't attached an order to train her in some basics of combat. Basics it would be, nothing more and nothing less.

He had to wait an hour longer, while the spot that was Altharya moved suddenly. Where was she off to now? Frowning, he watched as the spot moved to the… oh kriff. The med center. Why rub it in her face more? Everyone knew that little Senya was practically dead. Just kept alive to keep up hope for her family…. Her family that ran half the system.

When Altharya had asked if this might plunge them into war, he hadn't really wanted to tell her that the war was already brewing, given her tendency to run headfirst into trouble. They had to be out of here before Senya died, before all-out war broke out. Preferably with Monts. If not, they had to hide somewhere on one of the planets. The chaos would also cover their trail, in case any of that emperor's lackeys were getting too close.

"We have scrambled together something," one of the slicers suddenly said, and Kiani immediately stormed over with Boba on her heels.

Somehow he doubted how useful those videos were to begin with. He leaned over one of the seated slicers, who cowered away from him. Good- he needed to a clear view.

On the screens a grainy film started playing. He had to squint his eyes to see clearly. It showed the corridor in front of the labs. There were the guards who'd been posted that day. Now… who had slipped up? Who was the mole?

They watched nothing happen for a while, the time on the screens ticking away, until it blacked out and then returned to a time ten standard minutes after.

"Is this the time when the sample was contaminated?" He asked, looking at Kiani for confirmation.

"Yes, when the lab technician came back fifteen minutes later the sample was contaminated."

And no one noticed anything? During that time only two guards had remained at the door. Two guards he had been assured of having unwavering loyalty, at least according to Kiani. Not that he trusted her that much. Anyone could be bought. There was always a price tag on a person's morals. But he couldn't interrogate those two, nor was he allowed into the room at the moment. They were still doing their forensics. He had to scoff; given how much time they already wasted on flimsy leads, he doubted they'd find anything substantial now.

Kiani looked defeated when the screens flickered when the recording was stopped, no haughtiness in the air around her. What a miracle! It was grating most of the time. Right, now they'd all stand here and throw ideas on the table and try and see what happened? If he could just be let into that room he'd be able to make his own assessment! If they complained about him not finding the assassin fast enough, they could go and suck their own-

"It must have been one of ours," Kiani sighed, sounding smaller than she was. He quirked an eyebrow under his helmet. Was she trying to convince herself? It was so obvious. Had she been holding hope that it couldn't be true? That the people here were unquestionably loyal to the Arions?

How naïve.

Now what? She turned to look at him, her eyes hooded and blank as she stared at him for a moment.

"What do you think?" she asked him.

"I know someone is preparing for something."

"How?"

"He scrambled the video, but left enough to be restored so you can sit here for a while to see nothing of use," he explained.

Distraction tactics. Now what was that assassin trying to distract them from? The question to answer all questions. Were they sure the security detail for that Arion girl and Altharya was enough, given how there was an assassin either in disguise somewhere or sneaking through vents?

"He is toying with us," Kiani gritted out, her teeth gnashing audibly. Hm, her teeth were going to thank her later.

"No. Distraction tactics. If an assassin was toying with you, the primary objective would be distraction. Now what he is distracting you all from is the real question," he fired back, causing them all tense up.

How had they gotten their jobs and how were the Arions still alive?

"I know, bounty hunter," Kiani hissed through her gritted teeth while taking out her data pad and beginning to type. Hurt pride was a bitter sting. He might have been sympathetic, but she had made the call to separate him from Altharya. She should stew in whatever wounded pride was stinging her.

"We can only speculate what he wants," Kiani sighed once she was finally done typing.

"Speculation? That assassin will want to finish the job, if he is already here," he retorted. They were wasting valuable time chasing after lost holo recordings. And the longer they stood around here, the more likely it would be for the assassin to reach Altharya.

"Lorena has been assigned the best security detail…" Kiani started and then stopped. Good, he did not need another lecture about how good and loyal they all were. A load of nerfshit, that was.

"The forensics have finished with the lab," she said bitterly now, "you have permission to see it."

"Right. Take me there," he answered absentmindedly.

Hah. Good. Whoever wrote that message had some sense. Somehow he knew it must have come from the big boss himself. Who else could overturn the security chief's word on that matter? He wanted to gloat, really. But he had a job to do, one that would pay well enough for him to have considered it, even without a pay raise.

If only Altharya could just sit still and not mess around with the lines he had drawn. What had father said about the Jetii? They will twist you until you follow them. And he was falling for it. Sighing, he looked at the dot that was Altharya. Still in the medical centre? He had to frown. What were they doing there?

Kiani turned on her heels and stormed straight out of the room and he had to jog to keep up with her. He had to admit she had fire. Not as much fire as Altharya had, with how adamant she was being with his treatment, but he would not step in either woman's way for now. For now. Altharya was planning something, trying to make him less suspicious. Though, she was in the perfect position to convince the Arions to protect her. With all the 'gratitude' they had been subject to, it would not surprise him.

Whatever Altharya decided to do, he could only hope he could get them both out without too many dying. If she decided to. She was confusing. Too confusing.

They reached a blast door with five guards in front of it. So their answer to a breach in security was to post more guards…. What?

"One of our lab technicians disappeared and we have posted his info around," Kiani informed him and he had to sigh.

"Why am I only told this now?"

"The information was just relayed," Kiani bit back. The guards stood stiffly at attention when they breezed past them, the doors whooshing open to the clean white lab.

"And?" Now what did they think that meant?

"We suppose he is the guy we are looking for," Kiani explained. Not the only option, but he could play along for now. Let's see how far he could humiliate her in front of everyone.

He looked around the room with a few people scuttling around in the background. So what had they overseen? A missing technician? Too obvious about identity, and they were falling for it. Now what could have happened? What did he know?

His target would be either Altharya or Lorena or the boss.

He had destroyed the DNA sample.

A missing technician.

What had he done in the jobs such as this? Cleaning up behind him should there have been a witness. A missing person meant an unwanted witness. Or… a disguise. A disguise he would have to kill for. If there had been an accomplice, the accomplice would be dead by now too. No one was left alive on that level. Two bodies. They were looking for two already.

There had been a ten minute window between the lab technician arriving with his guard and the check up after, when the sample had been discovered to be tampered with. Was the guard the mole?

"Who was the guard with the lab technician?"

Kiani frowned at him. What was there to be confused about?

Where could someone dump two bodies without either seeing or smelling them? Air vents... not possible. The smell would be everywhere by now, unless he left them alive. Did they have big enough air vents to allow bodies crawling through them?

He looked up and saw the grates on the ceiling. It would be big enough to squeeze a medium sized body through. Right. Pointing upwards he drew the eyes of everyone in the room.

"Have you looked inside the vents?" He only earned himself blank stares. They hadn't, then.

"Those vents are welded shut. There's no way someone can go through there."

Fair enough. Though he zoomed in with his vision. No obvious cutting marks. Well, that was out of the question as an option, unless he had planned ahead for witnesses and had thought of getting a metal cutter. Especially in that short amount of time. Unless the assassin had been planning on hitting more than one Arion.

Feasible?

No. He would have shot Morion as well, back in the market. The opportunity had been there. With Altharya being a witness to clean up after and then coming to the manor they might have decided to take more Arions down while they were there. Made sense. But still stupid to do something like that without proper planning.

Not that most assassins he had run across could boast that much. Only the good ones, but even then they always made mistakes. One tiny mistake was all that was needed. Unless they ultimately didn't care if someone found out who did it. This one was taking care not leave any trails.

To even think that this idiot was willing to go that far to clean up after his hit on Senya... Why did someone running to help the girl automatically make them a target? Was it all politics? Hit the morale of the other family's people? Stank too much like a Brent having connections right to the inner circles of the Arions. Why then try and blur the lines of who did it? This was the corporate sector. Any company large enough might have a syndicate backing them, and the sector had thousands of systems and as many companies grasping for power. Arion's competitors could have done the hit and were trying to make it seem like a Brent was behind it all.

Hm. That was an option. But then again, he had no concrete hints either. Right now he needed to see where the lab technician was. Definitely dead, body shoved somewhere to be destroyed… Destroyed? He looked around. They were in a lab- a lab that had a furnace and a chute where all the garbage was compressed.

Why hadn't he thought about this earlier?

"Where is the garbage chute?" He asked and Kiani startled slightly, her brows furrowing at his question. Then she pointed towards his right.

"There?" She sounded unsure, more saying it like a question than pointing him in a direction. It was close to the fume cupboards.

The fume cupboards that were not in operation. Still, he would need to have a look. He opened the lid to it and… he knew it. Blood stains were all over the shredding knives. Lab technician. Now he only needed something to prove to them that it was the unfortunate guy. He looked to the bottom of the heckler. Nope. Nothing.

Right. Furnace. The smell of a body would still be around at this time. Or something was still around. Like metal.

Like the buttons on the officer's shoulders.

He stomped past a clueless Kiani towards the furnace latch. The interface still blinked from a recent use- a recent command to burn something.

How interesting…

He unlatched the hatch and Kiani made a strangled noise, to stop him maybe, but he had already opened it.

Yep. He knew it. The small metal buttons glinted in the ashes. In between there was a piece of bone that hadn't burned up yet.

"I guess there you have your unfortunate lab technician," he said and Kiani's mouth pressed into a thin line. A body, and no real trail, either.

Now. Could they move on? They said that the technician had left the lab an hour after arriving. How did the assassin manage to get in and then leave undetected until now? The vents were not breached.

He paused while Kiani turned around to talk to someone. Why was Altharya still in the medical center?

Was she okay? Sighing, he wanted to punch someone or something. But if she was not okay, then what else could he do? How had he not seen it yesterday?

"… has the security detail been diverted from glass house yet?" Kiani was talking as he tuned in on her again. Garden? Why?

"Yes, Ma'am."

"Good. Have they reached the medical…"

Her com-link started beeping in short and long intervals. The most well-known emergency signal there was in the whole galaxy. His neck prickled. Not good.

Altharya was still in the medical center, so …

"That was the gardener," Kiani had gone white. More beeping filled the tense air now. She pressed the answer button and a frantic voice screeched into life.

"Lorena is not in her rooms, nor is Miss Struhn!"

KRIFF IT ALL!

He was out of the door before any of the others could react.

* * *

She whirled around and tackled Lorena who shrieked in surprise when they toppled over the large pot behind it, as a red flash impacted where their heads had just been. Landing on their backs, they rolled a bit before coming to a stop. The clinking of flying glass and clay shards raining around them deafened her. Mud fell onto them and she threw her hands up to ward off the shards cutting into her and Lorena's face, squeezing her eyes shut.

The assassin. She couldn't move, her body frozen in place, the Force screaming around her. Lorena had stopped screaming and deathly silence fell over them. Was this death?

No. Her hip and back hurt. They hurt badly, as if a hot iron was pressed to them. This was not death.

A horrified gasp could be heard and slowly she opened her eyes to see…

Oh no. This was not supposed to happen. She wasn't strong enough for that!

Shards were hanging in the air around them, glittering in the sunlight. Some were rotating in place, others were wobbling. But they stayed in place.

Was she doing this? How? This was… more shards wobbled and she had to bite her lip to keep her focus on them. The wobbling did not stop, but it grew even. They had to get out from there.

"Scoot," she hissed to Lorena, who complied with a rustling of skirts. She dropped her hands to her face, letting the shards rain around her. A few landed on the back of her hands. Right- how was she supposed to get them off?

Lift her hands up? No. Too risky. Roll around? Sounded better. Slowly she rolled onto her side, feeling sharp edges skidding down along her skin until they shattered on the stone ground. Hands were on her fingers now, prying them away. What? Lorena? What was she doing?

"Altharya? Was that you?" Lorena's voice squeaked, gone the even tone from before.

Dumbly, Altharya stared at Lorena. They were safe. She had prevented someone dying! Her heart jumped into her throat and she… wanted to cry. What could she really say? Yes, she could use the Force? She tried to speak, but a heavy lump choked the words in her throat. Hopefully that was enough of an answer. How could she ever explain the accidental use of the Force, when she knew next to nothing about it?

Lorena's eyes softened and started to pull her to stand. Wobbling on her knees, she stood up and leaned on Lorena who clung to her, trembling like a leaf.

Now what? Shaking, she looked to the destroyed pot at their backs. It was shattered and the plant was smoking a bit further away. Then she saw the huge jagged hole in the wall of the greenhouse, glass shards littering the ground around it.

The hair on her neck rose and she pushed forcibly against Lorena, who stumbled along with her.

"We have to keep moving," she mumbled an explanation. Lorena only shook her head vividly, her brown eyes ripped wide open. Her left hand went into her hair, messing it up.

"Is that the assassin?" Lorena whispered weakly as they stumbled around a bend.

Altharya closed her eyes to concentrate. If the Force had intervened back then, then surely she could sense the assassin. Wherever that bastard was. Bright spots blinked across her vision and … damn.

That was a plant!

A spot… that was the one! She pinched the bridge of her nose. Focus! It had been fleeting, but it was moving. Moving where? Towards or away from them? Opening her eyes, she forced them both to their knees, hiding them in a group of bushes. They couldn't easily be seen unless the bastard had an infrared camera.

As soon as the spot flickered out of her vision a brighter spot flung itself into its field. A familiar rapidly blinking spot, she stretched to feel it and… warmth and… anxiety? What…. Who?

Boba….

"Had you called security?" She asked finally, dropping her hand to look at Lorena who had curled up into a ball next to her.

Tentatively she put an arm around Lorena's shoulders. They were safe for now, if Boba was rushing towards them. He would not let them come to harm, she knew that. Lorena did not answer, only a whimper escaped her. Poor girl. Probably never had to fear for her life or escape something so unexpected. What could she even say to make her feel safe?

Heavy boot stomps were heard first and… those were the steps of Boba! They were alright now! Thank the Force! Her heart soared as she felt him and so many other presences crashing into the greenhouse. She had to withdraw her mind to not be faced with the onslaught of thoughts.

"They are here," she murmured to the still trembling Lorena and waited for a reaction.

None. Sighing she looked up hearing muffled voices. The faster they were with them the better. She looked back to Lorena and bit her lower lip. Leave her and get others to get her? Or help her like she did with her back then? But Boba was there and… he could wait. Lorena was more important. Gently she pushed her hands underneath her armpits and lifted her up, unfolding Lorena like a piece of paper her limbs flailing everywhere. Oh Force… this was like lifting an unconscious patient. Damn.

"We are safe," she pressed through gritted teeth as she hauled the catatonic Lorena through a bush.

Right, now where was… Her foot got stuck somewhere and Lorena's weight suddenly shifted as she finally moved… She opened her mouth to curse, but all air rushed out of her as they toppled over and onto the path. Her shoulder impacted hard with the stone slaps and she groaned as her hand flew to the hurting spot. Ouch… Of course it had to happen to her….

"Lorena!" someone shouted, Lorena's weight finally being lifted off her and she could breathe freely finally.

Coughing she rolled to her side. What a day. Comforting warmth rushed over her before an armoured hand settled on her shoulder. She looked up and saw Boba's face hovering above her. A smile spread on her face and she could not stop it, not that she wanted to. He was here now and all would be fine, that feeling of safety settling deep in her bones making her all hazy. Her head lolled to the side where many boots were shuffling around. An arm shifted underneath her head and another slung around her waist, sitting her up. Boba was propping her up and her face was so close to his now. There was a crease in his forehead, his lips were pinched… his eyes shone with something she could not discern.

Anger? Uncertainty? Worry? For her? Her hands gripped the edge of his chest plate. How was this all possible? She kept looking at him as he looked her over as if he was looking for injuries. Suddenly the palm of his hand was on her cheek and she felt herself being pressed into the nook of his neck, blocking her view of everything around them.

"Are you alright?" His mouth was close to her ear and she would have nearly missed the whisper amongst the chattering of the guards and whoever was prattling with Lorena. But she heard it and her stomach fluttered at the concern. They were safe, that was all that mattered.

Why did he need to be so close? Her nose was brushing the cloth on his neck and she could practically smell the fear he must have had running to them. Her other arm slung around his shoulders, pressing herself closer.

She nodded slightly, feeling him deflate underneath her fingers. The arm around her waist tightened and relaxed briefly. Had she just imagined it? Yeah, probably. But for now… she let her face stay where it was. To just breathe... So close to the warmth of another person that somehow cared in his own way.

How could a hug feel so intimate?

* * *

 **AN: This chapter is out a day or two after the last one. Honestly I wanted it out before it gathered more dust in Google docs than it already was doing. I have no more chapters done or ready after this one. So please please bear with me. I will try to stick with a 2 week schedule (allows me time to write and my beta SapphiraBlue to get to it).**

 **Beta: SapphiraBlue (on AO3).**

 **FistMist: Thank you for the review and I hope you liked the Boba POV in this chapter! The reason why I made this chapter was to primarily set up a major conflict/story arc for later down the road (waaaay later down the road). I am really glad you liked the background and the explanations though! Hopefully I will see you around in later chapters.**


	13. Chapter 13

**AN: Sorry for the delay. Life has been stressful. I know it is long, but I couldn't find anything to cut out either.**

 **Betas: SapphiraBlue and ShaeTiann (both can be found on AO3)**

* * *

Boba had not let her out of his sight ever since. It was starting to get annoying to feel him hovering behind or next to her, always positioned to have her in his direct view. The constant buzz of his presence pressing against her mind… she wanted to slap it all away. It was stifling, not reassuring in any sense. His bounty nearly died and now he was being super possessive of his walking credit bag.

Huffing, she shot Boba a dark glare. He only raised an eyebrow in response as he leaned against the wall of their shared room.

"I am trying to concentrate," she finally gritted out and his other eyebrow rose in response. Anger boiled up in her chest when he looked mockingly at her. Bastard! Releasing another huff she turned her back to him.

"You have been trying to sense that guy for hours now," Boba retorted. She could hear him stepping towards her now. His hand was hovering over her shoulder, its presence charging the air around her. How it hadn't discharged static yet was a small miracle in itself. And there went her focus…. He was doing this deliberately! She frowned. Why would he do that?

The hand dropped away, the air moving behind her as it came to rest at his side. She didn't need to turn around to know his face had a defeated look. Her senses were sensitized now and somehow she wished she could just shut it all away until it had stabilized itself again.

"I know," she bit back, straightening out her spine, the straps of the dress sliding down a fraction.

"And even if you did sense him, what then?" he asked, walking to stand in front of her. She looked up from where she was sitting on her bed. A pensive look had settled on his face and she had to sigh. A valid point. Even if she managed to get a grasp on that bastard, what then? Would she be able to tell where he was? What his next motives were? All she'd been able to sense were nearby spots of life.

"Altharya," he knelt down, his hands settling on her knees and he forcibly looked into her eyes. She swallowed and stared right back. If he was trying to intimidate her he had gotten the wrong person, even if he managed to pull off a convincing look of concern, "you nearly died back then. Rest."

He sounded so earnest that she almost forgot what she had been trying to do. Almost.

"Have you forgotten what they said back in that security room?" She snapped back and his face closed up again, expression passive again.

"I remember. I also remember that they couldn't trace anything to their own people and are working on it," he said calmly, even if there was an annoyed undertone.

She bared her teeth at him in response.

His reaction?

An eye roll.

Her hands were shaking as she gripped the sheets of the bed tightly. How dare he mock her? What was he doing? Oh yeah, a glorified babysitter. The Arions had agreed that Lorena and Altharya would be kept in separate locations while the security forces ran their own checks. Last they heard they had found a half drugged gardener in his shed, his comlink stolen. However, no one had been reported leaving the mansion, either.

Investigations were going on to see if any of the guards or servants were involved. Boba had shepherded her out of the room and snarled at one of the guards when they had said they had orders to protect her. Oh yeah… 'Only after you all are cleared'. Now what? They were alone in their room while the hours ticked away, useless and awaiting news.

The assassin was around and she knew him in the Force now, had felt him scurrying away when he saw his shot miss and a horde of security guards stampeding in that direction.

"I felt him Boba!" she argued back and tried to do expand her mind again only to have it ricochet back into her skull. Groaning, she hung her head as her temples throbbed in pain. The palms of his hands were on her cheeks now and he lifted her face up to make her look at him again.

"Hey, even I know you're trying too hard," he deadpanned while his index finger drew circles on the side of her skull. It definitely soothed the pain and she felt herself melting into the touch with a sigh. In a way it was funny; she had done the same thing to soothe him on the ship when he had been in the throes of a fever. Now he was helping her relax. She felt her eyes closing at the sensation and just let him do what he was doing. Her stomach was fluttering nervously at the touch- she _really_ needed to sort herself out. Maybe getting to a place where it was just them would let her put the boundaries back in place instead of this mess.

"Get some rest, please," and why could she not sense anything but sincerity whenever he opened his mouth? It was… maddening. His mental shields had been let down a while ago, as if knowing she needed some calming.

It hadn't worked. It had only freaked her out to the point where she nearly had twisted out of his arms as he had been half carrying her. But he still had not put them up again. How did he know so much about mental shields? Was it something that was taught to bounty hunters? Or was it learnt?

To be honest, she had only freaked out at how strongly his thoughts had slammed into her head. Like a tidal wave. How could she feel him so much more acutely than anyone else? It shouldn't be possible. At least she felt like it should not be. It was how things were now, and she had no idea how to deal with it. Wherever she turned her head, his presence lingered at the edges, even when she tried to shut the Force out completely. What was the Force trying to tell her? Because it was being so cryptic that it could mean anything and nothing at once.

"What then?" She asked quietly and his fingers on her temple stopped briefly.

Hesitation prickled at the edge of her senses and… she had to breathe through her mouth to dispel how dizzy it was making her feel.

"What do you mean?" He asked bluntly, withdrawing his fingers, leaving only cool air in their place. No. She wanted them back. But she kept her mouth shut; it would be strange to ask for him to rub her temples. Far too strange. After all, she could just do it herself. If she could only loosen her grip on the bed sheets, that was. Looked like the dull pounding against her forehead was there to stay for a while.

"What after? Are you planning on staying with me while the assassin will no doubt try again?"

"Yes," he groaned.

"And you will just let us sit in a trap like this?"

"You think this is a trap?" he sounded stunned.

"What else would it be?" She retorted and he sighed in response.

"He tried to kill you back then. The only thing he would be concerned with is hiding and forming a new plan."

"What if he already had a back-up plan?" she countered immediately.

"Back-up plans take time," Boba explained patiently, "especially on that scale."

"What scale are we talking about?" She wanted to know.

Who was the target here? Her or Lorena? Surely… oh, she nearly forgot. They both were under Arion's protection now. Did that tip the scales too much?

"We are talking about someone who shot Senya Arion, who also went to our room to eliminate you," he listed, holding two fingers up for the two points he made, "managed to infiltrate the manor in less than a day," another finger went up, "had help from the inside," a fourth finger hovered in front of her eyes, "and managed to separate you and Lorena from an entire house filled with guards," he finished and she had to swallow.

He was right. As usual. Though, what did she expect? A bounty hunter to be wrong in such matters? As if someone in that profession lived long without such knowledge. How could she forget…

"Right… but what when he has had the time? What then?" she gritted through her teeth and slowly and steadily the pounding lessened.

Her fingers on the bed sheet relaxed and she placed them in her lap, the joints aching from the tight grip. Boba looked pensive and she looked him in the eyes, as if it would give her any answers. Something prickled near her mouth and she felt her hands twisting together. The prickling spread to the back of her ears, but she could not look away. Yet.

His eyes were hooded, but still sharp as he regarded her for a moment that seemed like eternity.

"I will track him down," he said confidently and put his hands on her knees again. Had they been shaking? Yes. How hadn't she noticed? She stared blankly at his hands. Should she do or say something about it?

Maybe not. So she looked back up again, looking back into his eyes. Why was he so intense all the time? The prickling was back.

"How?" she needed to know if he was going to leave her here.

That assassin had managed to evade capture so many times now. What was to say against him succeeding in avoiding capture again? Nothing.

Boba frowned now. She had confused him, or was she seeing it wrong?

"Or are you planning to stay here with me until he comes barging in and hope he won't land a shot on either of us?" She pressed further. Her hands relaxed a little and she did not know what to do with them. Tentatively she laid her right one on his hand that was on her knee as she kept looking at him. If he was counting on her backing down, he had another thing coming! Oh no, she was no longer the scared Youngling anymore.

The muscles underneath her palm twitched as his fingers dug into the sides of her knees now. He was not expecting her to talk back like that. She cocked her head, waiting for him to answer. What was he going to do? He could yell at her or… answer her.

What was he going to do? _Come on, answer_! Maybe she could make sense of all of his interactions with her with that response.

"What do you want me to say?" he finally said, sounding more tired than she had expected and her stomach twisted. A lump had formed in her throat at how exhausted he looked suddenly.

"What you will do," she answered softly watching him for any reaction.

None came. Only their breathing filled the space between them that grew with each passing second. She had caught him off guard. Had he not thought that far yet? Or did he not just want to tell her? Would he leave her here in this room, alone, wondering whether the next person to enter would be her death or just Boba?

"I was planning on staying with you and when he comes, I will be there," he said finally as she breathed out, dropping her shoulders. He planned on staying here. To make sure that she did not die as soon as he turned around.

She had to cringe. The last two times she had been separated from him, she did nearly die. Just dumb pure luck saved her in each instance.

But was it a good idea to sit like prey in a trap until the hunter comes to snap their necks? The hair on her neck rose at the thought. No, they were not prey. Not with Boba. Right?

"Are you sure we should just let him come to us?" She questioned him, raising an eyebrow to challenge him. His eyes flashed in … she could not really say what it was. Amusement? Anger? She could not sense anything, his mental walls were up again and the suddenly missing white noise of his presence prickling at the edges of hers left her winded. Her eyes searched his for answers. What was he feeling? Why keep it from her? She could see nothing, only… wonder? Was that wonder? As if he was seeing her for the first time.

His hands relaxed their hold on her knees and she drew a deep breath.

"Do you have any better ideas?" He challenged and he stood up, towering over her now. She craned her neck to keep looking at him. Who needed to be taller than someone to stare them down? Not her. No. If he felt like towering over her would make her back down, then she had already won.

"Have you tried to find the spot he must have been to catch us?" She asked and he looked taken aback.

"Risk going out there and leaving you here?" He sounded reluctant.

"What if I can get a better sense of him if I was there?" She explained her idea and his face closed off again immediately.

"No."

"No?"

"No. You are staying here, end of discussion," he gritted through his teeth and she sighed.

"I am not discussing anything, I am…"

"Yes you are," he interrupted roughly, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

"If you would listen, then you'd know I was about to _suggest_ something," she snapped back and he rolled his eyes in response. Right, he was going to play this game. Fine. She could be petty as well. Now, who of them will be the pettiest?

"Right, tell me then!" he challenged with his eyebrows raised to taunt her. Could she punch him? Better not. Her hands had curled themselves into fist and with the flashing of his eyes down she knew he had seen it too. Fine. Let him see! What else did she have to lose at this point?

"We shouldn't let him have any time to put a second plan in motion."

"And your solution is to find his sniper nest, leaving us both exposed?" He sounded skeptic. She did not need the Force to know that.

"Better than this," she retorted and now Boba just looked amused.

"To tell _me_ how to do my job?" He fired back, his stance had relaxed a bit.

Oh. Did he really think this was a game?

"Well, I am pretty sure you would try and find where he had hidden, if you could," why she was so sure about it she did not know, but the very brief hesitation that flashed through her sense of him told her enough.

A small victory? She could take it. After all the kicking she had received lately, this was overdue.

"If I _could_ ," he emphasised and she had to bite her tongue to not interrupt, "but you are not safe _yet_."

True. But how else could they get some head start on that assassin? It just didn't sit right with her that they sat here like prey caught in a hunter's trap. They shouldn't. Heck, Boba shouldn't. He was the best! At least, she had thought that was what it had meant to be the best. Unless…

"I could come with you," she blurted out the suggestion before her mind could catch up with the thought as it left her mouth. He looked truly startled now and his shields flickered. Shock and apprehension flooded her mind and she winced. Right. Maybe she hadn't gotten used to the Force again yet.

"Are you mad?" He finally asked in disbelief.

This time she couldn't keep it in and laughter bubbled forth and she had to double over clutching her stomach. She probably looked like she had lost her mind. Not that she could tell anymore where her mind was these days, but it surely would come back soon. It took her a few moments to stop laughing, while Boba just knelt there uncertainty radiating off of him in waves.

"Why was that so funny?"

"Of all the things we have done yet, this is the _maddest_?" She gasped out and he frowned at her.

"This is really not the time to see humour in things," he bit out and she bit her lower lip to prevent another burst of laughter that was hanging somewhere in the back of her throat. Right, fine. She would be serious. Staring at Boba, she tried to see what he was thinking. All she could really sense was confusion and… was that apprehension? Silence fell and weighed heavily on her shoulders. Shuddering, she rubbed her forearms.

"If I go to investigate, you would be alone here," Boba broke the silence and she had to sigh. Did he really not want her to come along if he was so concerned about that?

"Then I come with you," she pressed on again. Annoyance flickered briefly from him and then it was gone.

"I said no," he pressed back. They were getting nowhere at this rate. But then again, why was he so against her coming with him? She'd be with him of all people! Strangely enough, she felt safer around him. No, she _knew_ she would be safe.

"And sit here like a nice fat nerf until the wolf-cat gets it?" She knew she was being unfair to him, but they couldn't run either.

"You…" he sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose in annoyance, "You are not going outside. For all we know he could still be out there."

"You would be with me though," she deadpanned and his mouth pinched into a tiny, firm line.

"Are you trying to tempt him into killing you?"

"Would it be so bad at this point?" she shot back before she could her brain could catch up with it. The temperature around them dropped significantly when his body flinched at the words. Biting her tongue harshly, she watched as his face became emotionless. It scared her how blank it was now. Why couldn't she just keep her mouth shut?

"You do not mean that," he gritted out after a moment of stunned silence and she hung her head to avoid looking at his face. It was bad enough she could feel twinges of fear spiking from beneath his mental shields. She didn't need to look at his face to know he was shocked at what she had said. Then again, she was doomed to die one way or another. Did it matter how and when?

Twisting her hands into each other again, she stared at her knuckles as they grew whiter with the seconds ticking away in the silence that hung between them now. Boba was rooted in the place in front of her, so close yet so far away.

"Maybe…" she started before he was back in her space, his presence overwhelming hers and she could not finish the sentence as he levelled her with a furious stare.

"I think it would be best if you _slept_ ," he growled harshly and she had to swallow.

Sleep was impossible with all that had been happening around them! How could she even attempt to sleep?! An assassin was after them all and they had managed to nearly kill her and Lorena! If she hadn't had the Force, they'd both be dead. And he wanted her to sleep?!

"Do you really think I can sleep?" she hissed through her gritted teeth.

"It would _help_ if you did," he snapped back and she had to squeeze her hands harder to prevent them into forming fists. Punching him seemed such a good idea. If only she wouldn't break her knuckles on his breastplate if she decided to punch him.

"And how do you suggest I go about it?" Fine, he wanted to play that game then he might as well lay out the rules. Because clearly she was not aware how to do it. She knew she was being petty. But she relished the annoyed look that crossed Boba's face. Good. Did he finally see that sleeping was a bit out of realm of capabilities for her right now?

"You lay down," he growled.

His hands suddenly on her shoulders, pushing them back and she was not strong enough to push back or to resist. Her hands flew to his wrists, trying to pry them off, but he would not be deterred. Then she was on her back and he stood next to the bed, now looking down at her.

"Then you close your eyes and then calm down," he finished explaining shooting her a smug grin. She crossed her arms across her chest, pouting up at him.

"Calming down? You make it sound so easy!"

Though, lying down now, she felt blood draining from her face suddenly. What? That was not right, her eyelids fluttered involuntarily. How was she suddenly tired, just by lying down?

"See, it's not so hard," she could hear the suppressed chuckle from above and she tried to glare at him.

Tried and failed, miserably. Her mouth was glued shut to even retort. Not that she had anything witty to come back at him with. Not at all. Probably best if she didn't slur anything intelligible either.

The mattress next to her dipped and she could feel him lying down next to her. Why was he doing that?

"What are you doing?" She turned her head towards him, staring at his temples as he kept his eyes to the ceiling.

"We will be in here for a while. I am not going to be standing for it all," he answered, glancing over to her.

"You have your own bed."

"And let you out of my sight for a moment? No."

She groaned loudly at that. Was it necessary for him to lie next to her? It was not her fault that an assassin was after her and was capable of redirecting guards in a highly secured compound.

"Do you think that assassin is going to bust in this room any moment?" She had to tease him. It took him a moment to see it for the tease that it was. He grinned broadly at her.

"He'd be pretty stupid to barge into the same room I'm in," he moved his arms behind his head opening up space next to him and she could feel herself gravitating towards him. Not that she wanted to; his weight dipped the mattress and made her slide towards him.

Totally not her own doing.

"A lot of people are stupid," she argued quietly while settling in close to him. Sleep seemed like a good idea, now. Her eyelids were too heavy to keep up, so she let them fall shut.

"You're right," he sighed, and she felt him adjust himself slightly.

It felt like he had shifted closer, the metal of his armour just out of her reach. If she only stretched out her fingertips, she'd bump into his waist armour.

"But this one is not. So sleep it off."

"What about you?" she whispered. When would he sleep, catch some rest?

"Hm?"

"You should sleep too."

"Don't worry about me," he scoffed and her fingers curled into the bed sheets, "I have gone a few days without sleep."

She frowned. That wasn't healthy, but somehow she felt like asking him how many times he had skipped on resting wasn't what she should do either. It was something sore, it felt painful and she could feel it boiling underneath his skin. It scared her. Whatever it was, she should stay away from it, as far away as possible.

Towards afternoon she had woken up again, for once feeling calmer than the last couple of days. Boba was still next to her, this time staring at a datapad in his hands. Who would have thought that sleep did help? No, she would not credit Boba for that. She should have thought about it first given that she was the medic amongst the two of them.

"Boba?"

He looked to her as soon as she spoke, putting the datapad down on his stomach.

"Yes?"

"How long have I slept?"

"Two hours, give or take a few minutes."

That was longer than she expected to have been asleep. Rubbing her eyes she looked towards the window. It was still light outside, but two hours seemed like a lot.

"Has anything happened while I was asleep?"

"Not really, only that they managed to vet the core guards while you were out."

"The core guards?"

"The ones directly responsible for Lorena, Morion, Senya and Eric Arion."

So they were safe. Good. Though, that meant that the assassin had been smart enough to not hide in that circle.

"So basically, they are not any further?"

"In essence," he sighed and propped himself up on an elbow shifting to his side so he was looking down at her.

"What now?" She asked.

Though, come to think of it. Changing her clothes would be good. The dress was constricting! Were her legs tangled? Yes. Could she feel the straps on her throat? Yes. Note to self: never fall asleep in a fancy dress again.

"I will catch that bastard and then we are out of here," he sighed and grabbed the datapad again.

"And how are you going to do that if you are in here?" She prodded further, now sitting up trying to push the straps back down to their proper place. Now to find her old clothes and she would be more comfortable.

He didn't say anything while she opened the wardrobe to grab her clothes out of it. Nothing when she turned around to him, he only stared at her with the data-pad in hand. Either he had no plan or he had and didn't tell her about it. She shouldn't be bothered either way. Really shouldn't, but somehow it bothered her that she wasn't told anything.

In the bathroom she released a big breath she had been holding, changing as quickly as she could.

Once she stepped back into their room, Boba spoke.

"You are not letting up anytime soon are you?" He sounded tired, strained. Her shoulders sagged at the question. Was she really sure that it would be a good idea? Then again, what other options did they have? She was not going to stay put until the assassin came to her. No, she would come to them. Not the other way around.

"No."

"Then suit yourself," he rolled his eyes now going back to reading his data pad, ignoring her. She clenched her fists. Talking to him won't get her anywhere. Fine. If that were the case, she would do it by herself.

Only if she could even manage to get away from him without him noticing. Practically impossible. He would just drag her back and maybe tie her down. If she ran across the assassin without Boba who knew how it would end up then. She couldn't keep relying on the Force to scrape her by.

So much for doing it by herself. Sighing she dropped onto the bed, only to be ignored still. Not that she wanted a reaction. Really not. He could stuff his thoughts elsewhere, even if any impressions of them were muted right now. Nothing was buzzing at her mind.

Blissful silence. Finally. She shifted into a lying position again, facing Boba as he continued to read whatever was on the data-pad.

"What are you reading?"

"Monts and Kiani are sending me stuff," he muttered noncommittally.

"Stuff?"

"Monts is on the lookout for anything unusual in the underworld. Kiani is updating who is cleared and who is not," he listed off while tilting the data-pad so she could see the multitude of messages being displayed.

"Has Monts found anything?"

"No. He says it is unusually quiet."

"That means?"

"Either they are surprised or one of them planned it and they are trying not to draw too much attention."

"Nothing useful."

"It has been two days."

"And another assassination attempt," she fired back immediately and Boba pinched his mouth into a thin line for a moment in response.

"Yes, and another attempt. Would you please let me do my job?" He hissed and she narrowed her eyes at him.

"And what exactly are you doing?" She demanded, now pushing herself up with her hands, arching her back. Boba set down his datapad, shifting onto his side to face her.

"I am trying to figure out who we are looking for," he said calmly.

"By being in this room?"

"Aye. Look, I know what you are trying to do, it will not happen. You are safer here right now than outside."

"Didn't you yourself say that the assassin will plan and hide right now?"

"I said that, but wandering around relying on that fact is just idiotic," he scoffed, frowning now.

"Are we still too exposed?"

"Yes. A lot of the guards are still not accounted for," at least he hadn't shot the idea down immediately again.

"So we have to wait a bit longer to investigate?"

"Yes," he rolled his eyes while answering and fell back to grab the datapad. "Look, if you need something to do we can both try and figure clues out together, "he suggested suddenly and for once she did not know what to say.

"You want to do it with me?"

"Did I stutter?"

"No… it was just unexpected."

"Don't get used to it," he added and she had to hide a smile. Maybe there was hope for her after all.

"So what do we know?" She asked and he looked at her briefly not saying anything.

"Remember the blood sample they got from our room back with Monts?" he asked, prompting her to nod. Had they finally analysed it?

"Well, it got corrupted before any results could be finalised."

How? With widened eyes she regarded Boba who looked grim now. What had went wrong?

"How?" she asked and the look Boba gave her told her that it was the question they were all slaving on about.

"We do not know. The cameras in and outside of the lab are scrambled to the point they couldn't recover anything. There is another body," he continued and she had to lower her head. Another death? How many more until this was done?

"Who died?" she shifted now to sit on the pillow, her back at the headboard.

"We investigated the lab the sample was held in, we found the lab technician in the furnace. But the guy had been seen leaving the lab an hour later," he answered. She bit her lower lip in thought.

"When did we know that the sample was corrupted?"

"Hours later," he sighed, running a hand over his face.

Oh. They did that test, putting a solvent into the blood and wait a few hours for it to react and then analyse it.

"Who realised it was corrupted?" She probed.

"The lead scientist."

"Then why was the lab technician allowed alone with the sample?"

"I am wondering the same. All I got from the head scientist was that the lab technician was loyal to the Arions and wouldn't do something like that."

Well, that meant either the lab technician was either a traitor or… maybe she should ask Boba what he thought.

"What do you think?"

"I think the head scientist is right. We found the actual lab technician in that furnace. Now we are working on _who_ killed him and _why_ the guard didn't notice…" he stopped for a brief moment. He seemed to realise something that still evaded her, the flash of a dawning realisation prickling sharply.

"The guard who was with him, he smuggled the assassin in somehow. Killed the technician and…" he paused, his thoughts racing and she already sensed what he was going to say so she completed the sentence for him.

"Dressed up as the assassin and walked back out with the guard."

"Yes…" Boba said slowly, giving her a long look before he started typing on his data-pad.

"What are you doing?"

"I am going to ask Kiani if that guard is there. Make him a priority to be questioned. If he even is that stupid to hang around after the fact," Boba muttered darkly hitting the send button.

"So it would not help us at all," she sighed in frustration and he sent her a pointed look.

"Not really, they know what to look for now."

"You told them what you just thought of?"

"In simplified terms, yes."

Silence hung over them after his last statement. He stared at the opposite wall, the rush of his thoughts brushing past her mind. She couldn't begin to grasp them.

"What are you thinking?" he asked, making her refocus on him again.

"Nothing. Only that I will be stuck in this room."

"Not _nothing_ then."

Smartass. She glared at him and the bastard had the nerve to smirk back!

"You know what I meant."

"Then word it correctly."

She opened her mouth and closed it immediately after. No retort came to her mind. Why couldn't she be witty in these situations? After a while, Boba set down the datapad and looked outside the window pane.

"It has been long enough," he said and she cocked her head to the side. What did he mean?

"We can have that little _excursion_ now, but _you_ ," he pointed with a finger at her, "will stay within my sight at all times."

She nodded and kept her mouth shut. Not to risk him changing his mind. Moving off the bed, she started pulling on her boots until she heard him opening a window. Curious, she turned around and saw Boba testing the window frame, which seemed large enough to… Oh. He was planning on exiting through the windows? Her mouth pinched into a straight line. Of course, what had she expected? He had the jetpack to do these stunts.

"The window, seriously?" slipped out of her before she could reign herself in. He looked back to shoot her a confident smirk.

"Why take the long path if you can take the short one?" he replied before putting on his helmet. The change was still jarring, one moment he was a person the next he was something else. Her gut curled in, what was that feeling? Apprehension? Why? She knew that he would not hurt her. Remember: Walking credit bag.

He held out his hand and she hesitated a moment. How would they get out without destroying the glass?

"Problem?"

"Won't we destroy the glass?"

He stayed silent, still holding out his hand. Something resigned flashed through the air. It was confusing. What did it mean? That he had thought about it? Whether he was tired of arguing with her when he didn't need to?

Her fingers were shaking slightly the longer she hesitated. Maybe it was best if she just closed her eyes and let him do whatever he was about to do. Releasing a breath she took his hand and he pulled her towards him and then grabbed her underneath her armpits. Her feet left the ground before meeting a solid edge. What?

"Good thing," he commented, "that the windows open rather low."

Oh. She looked down and saw the edge of the window frame below her feet where she was lifted up to. How hadn't she seen that? His arms now slung around her front now, pressing her uncomfortably close, her shoulder plate digging into his chest plate.

Then they were in the air, the low whistle then the muted roar of an activating jetpack was her only warning before she felt herself jolted up as they flew straight forward. Her eyes watered from the wind pricking her eyes and she had to squint them.

When she finally could open them a bit more to see where they were actually flying, he was already gradually descending. The glitter of glass not too far away caught her eyes, before they flew behind a crown of a tree that blocked out the setting sun and the glasshouse.

In the middle of a flat, rather empty circle of pink grass. Empty compared to the other arrangements around them. Pale stone benches lined the edges with yellowish bushes behind them. It was pretty, especially with the muted orange light filtering through the leaves of the tree they had landed behind of.

A hand suddenly waved in front of her eyes and she flinched away from it.

"We have something to do," Boba's modulated snort disrupted the tentatively peaceful moment she had had. If glares could kill, she would gladly have murdered him already. He motioned for a tiny path leading away from the spot and she sighed. Right, probably would be best if they wasted no finding on finding the spot. Before it became dark.

He was right behind her, she could practically feel him, even when he was not even touching her. The only blessing right now was that her senses had finally recovered enough to filter out the blinking spots all around her. Good. That had been nauseating.

The greenhouse was deserted, the broken part of it making a stark contrast with the pristinely kept surroundings.

"So…how do we find that spot?" she asked aloud, looking behind her to Boba who leaned his head closer to her.

"How do you think?" he said and she swore he was mustering her from behind his helmet. And she couldn't even be sure if he was doing it or not! It was irritating.

"Why are you asking me? You're the bounty hunter here."

He didn't answer and she sighed. Would it be so terrible not to keep her out of the loop all the time? It didn't really help the short flashes of apprehension coming from him. Something was going on and she could already feel her heart sinking. He stared at her for a few more heartbeats, then relented.

"If you want to survive Vader, then you better pay attention," he said and the back of her neck prickled. Vader... How could she forget? But why would Boba care if she survived? Her shoulders slumped. She would take it as a sign of good will. Whatever it meant would just have to wait.

"Alright, then show me," she was finally able to pry her teeth open to speak.

"Can I assume you have an idea where the shot was coming from?"

"Direction wise?"

"What else?"

She didn't respond immediately, just looked at the jagged edges of the broken glass. The plant they had stood in front of would be just a straight line from the trees to their right. Turning towards the direction, she pointed wordlessly to that rough area.

"Good," was all Boba commented before waving her to follow him. Hastily she stumbled after him until they reached the group of trees she had pointed to.

"You are just going to trust my judgement?" She asked stunned when he stepped underneath the first few branches.

"Do you really think I haven't made my own judgement before asking you?" came his immediate deadpan.

She felt stupid now and her cheeks grew hot out of embarrassment. Rustling from above made her head snap upward. Between the leaves she could see Boba climbing up by the branches.

"Have you seen something?"

"Yes… and it is not a bird's nest," he yelled down before a major branch further up shook violently when he heaved himself up.

"Be careful!" she shouted and… was he laughing?! He was. Now she wished he'd fall down so she could laugh at him.

"A bit late to say that now!" He jested and the rustling stopped. Had he found something? Craning her neck, she shielded her eyes against the setting sun rays. His armour blended in with the light green leaves, so she couldn't really see him.

"Did you find anything?" She called then, waiting for his answer.

"Well… we did find his sniper nest, but…" his voice faded when more branch rustling could be heard, leaves falling down and into her hair. Gingerly she picked out the stray leaves from her braid when he jumped down in front of her again.

"I honestly did not catch anything you said after the fact of finding the sniper nest."

"I _said_ that I found some clothes," he repeated himself, while picking a few leaves from his cape. Clothes?

"Clothes?" she asked again. What kind of clothes?

"Clothes. Guard gloves to be specific," he elaborated.

"Did you take them?"

"Yeah, they are in one of my pouches."

"What do we do with them?" she asked curiously as he made no move to do anything.

"Look for the actual owner of them," he said curtly making a wide motion with his arm to indicate the rough area of densely packed trees.

"Actual owner? Not the assassin?"

"No. That would be too easy. Not with someone who was smart enough to corrupt our DNA sample and bypass all of this security still."

"And what makes you think he would not make such a mistake?"

He stared at her for moment before there was a modulated sigh.

"I told you there must have been a guard working with him," he explained again, voice steady, but a slight spike of annoyance flashed past her.

Had it even been there or had that just been her imagination? Never mind, his mind was a blank slate again.

Right. She remembered what he had said. One could hope though…

"Could he have used the gloves to frame the guard solely?"

"I don't think he wants to pretend that the guard acted alone anymore," Boba argued back. Good point. She blew a stray hair out of her face. What else could it be?

"But why use the gloves if there is no pretense left?"

"What do you think someone would get out of it?" He challenged, putting a fist onto his hip and she knew that behind the visor he had cocked an eyebrow at her. At least he was taking imparting some knowledge on her seriously. It was morbid. She still did not know what would make him want her to live for a while.

"Confuse us?" She shrugged at him. No annoyance this time. So did that mean she had thought something correct?

"It could be a possibility. Or," he paused to look to the nearest bush, "they are hiding something."

"Hiding what? That they kill people for a living?" she blurted out. What kind of reasoning was this? Amusement sparked up from him and she swore she could hear a chuckle too.

"I mean, if they are trying to hide that, then they are a bit late," he sounded like he was suppressing laughter hard.

"Why else?"

"Who would not want to be tied to the Arion's murder?"

"Anyone?"

"Anyone specifically who would have an interest in potentially planting evidence that would show on any inter system jury that it couldn't have been them," he reasoned, now shuffling with his feet. Shuffling too much. What was he doing?

Fine. Who would profit from eliminating that particular detail? Nothing came up. This was the corporate sector! There were business competitors, there were internal rivalries, there could be crime syndicates, terror groups or just family…

Oh.

OH!

"The Brents?" She exclaimed. How had she not thought of it the very second it was implied!

"Aye," Boba nodded with a grim undertone, "It would make more sense if a _Brent_ was doing this."

"Why would a Brent do that though? Why risk it?"

Boba parted a bush to look at its bottom. If he could just tell her what he was looking for she could maybe help? No?

"For centuries ever since the split, the Brents and Arions have been trying to eliminate the other to gain control over the entire system. Never really succeeded on either side when they had actively tried, but a cold war cannot lost long," he finally answered, pushing more branches out of his way.

"Ah," she frowned, "What are you doing?"

"No assassin will leave a loose end alive, especially if it can blab. We are looking for a body," he finally informed her.

Another body. Oh great.

Force... she'd be glad once they were done here. She looked around, where could she even start to search? Boba had said that the accomplice guard had been alive at least this morning. Had he missed any check ins?

"The guard that had been with the lab technician, was he there when they vetted them all?" She asked. How had they missed that?

"He is missing actually, as far as I am aware the people who were vetted were put on looking for him. But you know, they also need to stuff any leaks in security."

"Hence, here we are," she deducted slowly, moving a pile of leaves off a mound on the ground. The earth seemed firm, nothing had disturbed it. Where would one hide a body?

"Aye."

"If the guard is dead then…how will the assassin blend in again?" She wondered out loud now.

"Good question. I don't know."

"So blending in would be out of question?"

"Yes. This either means they have a plan or… they are planning on aborting the mission," Boba concluded his head snapping up to her.

"How would we know if they abandoned trying to kill me and another Arion?"

"If there are no incidents for a few weeks," Boba commented drily.

"Surely another will come."

"Correct."

"I am taking we both will be far gone then?" She teased, now crouching next to the base of a tree. The leaves were dry between her fingers, crumbling when she lifted them up. Dry. Too dry for the current weather. Hm.

"Yep," was the short reply before he let branches snap back into their previous position, the rustling of leaves jarring in the otherwise silent surroundings.

"Found anything?" She asked, while shuffling more dead leaves off the ground.

"Nothing so far. Anything on your end?" He asked and she could hear him stepping in her direction and he must be standing a bit behind her, the hair on her neck prickling already.

"Only really dry leaves." She held up her right hand with pieces of the leaves floating to the ground.

"That dry?" He sounded surprised as he knelt down next to her, also sweeping leaves away.

"I was wondering because usually the leaves underneath trees are _not_ that dry," she muttered as they laid the earth underneath bare.

It looked like it had been recently disturbed. _Very_ recently.

She could see the occasional worm on the surface curling up now that they were exposed. Boba's fingers dug into the earth, pushing the earth to the side, building up a small mount. Her fingers sank into the ground. It was so loose she didn't even need to work hard to shift the dirt to the side. The body must be underneath this. What else could it be?

"I think…" Boba started before pausing as he tugged on something hard and lifted a hand up. It was blue and the fingers were frozen in place. Rigor mortis had set in, then. It must be several hours since death.

No gloves. She looked over to Boba who pulled harder on the arm causing more dirt to fall away and a face came forth. The dirt had collected on the nose, mouth and eyelids. But half of the back of the skull was gone, charred flesh lining the edges. Blaster fire. Close range, too. Not a nice death. She pinched her lips and held her sleeve to her nose. The smell was unbearable.

"The gloves I found were his," he finished and set down the arm again.

"The size would fit," she commented as she withdrew her other hand. Nothing could be done here now.

"You going to contact the rest about this?"

"I will, but first," he stood up and motioned for her to do so too.

Her knees protested when she stood up as well. They had been in that bent position for too long. Then the hair on her neck and arms stood on end when Boba stepped towards her and held out his hand to her before continuing, "we are going back to our room."

She had to snort. Seemed like they would go back the way they had come. This time she did not hesitate to take his hand and was pulled to him, his arms hooking around her waist again. Why did her stomach swoop though when his arm had settled just underneath her chest? Weird. If she could only ask someone what these feelings were.

Back in their room, he immediately picked up the data-pad again typing his message in quickly. She didn't say anything. What they will do about this didn't really matter to her now. Only how could they go about catching them? Hadn't they proven to be slippery enough that Boba and an entire army of security could not immediately catch them?

She stepped into the bathroom to wash her hands, the pristine sink now littered with the dirt from outside. Somehow she felt nothing about the guard, if he had been complicit in all of it. No, they were _sure_ he had been complicit. He had allowed an attempt to happen on her and Lorena. If she had not sensed it, they'd be dead. How could she feel sorry for someone like that? He wouldn't have felt anything if they had died. Unclenching the fist her hand had become, she ran a hand through her hair, loosening her braid. She felt like she should feel _something_ about him being dead.

Groaning, she splashed water on her face to clear her thoughts. Thinking about it would get her nowhere. They couldn't ask him anymore what he had thought, or why. It all went with him to his grave. Struhn had said to shelve all of it away back when in their first weeks of living together.

Nothing could be done about it anymore, he had said. All that she could do was move forward. It had worked, worked _too_ well. The front of her head tensed and she had to pinch the area. A headache was coming. Great. Just great. Exactly what she needed right now. Blowing out a stressed breath, she braided her hair again. Something to focus on for now. Maybe it would clear some stuff up once she was done, as wishful thinking as that was.

One could hope though.

"Altharya?" Boba's question made her jump in surprise, making her yank on a strand of hair and she hissed at the sharp pain. Ow. She hadn't sensed his approach. His helmet was off and his hair was dishevelled still, sticking from his skull in all directions. It was distracting. If she only could smooth them out… Her fingers were itching to do it.

"Yes?" she snapped at him. Now she had to untangle her hand from her hair and start all over again. Boba held up his hands while leaning against the door frame, a sign of pacification. What did he want?

"Once you are done, we are going to meet Kiani," he said, his face impassive. There was nothing in the Force coming from him. Weird, there had been the undercurrents of his thoughts; now their absence was louder than when they were there. Unnerving.

"What does she want?" she asked, finally her hand was free from her hair.

"She wants us both to observe some of the vetting," he shot her a sharp look, "Lorena told her about your…," he left the obvious rancor in the room and she had to sigh in defeat, "so she wants mine and your _expertise_ on this matter."

"Lorena thought I was your slave, so she ordered that collar off," she explained. Why was he even explaining herself? As if he would care? He did not react at her explanation.

"I don't think you went around telling everyone about it. But they know somehow," he pressed on. Now searching her face for an answer.

"Lorena saw me use the Force," she shrugged. Boba flinched as soon as _Force_ left her mouth. Oh. He didn't like that word. Did he hate the Jedi so much he also hated the Force?

"And now we are in this mess," he groaned, turning around to look behind him for a second, "Just get ready."

Then he was gone and the door shut in her face and she exhaled. Confusing man. Then again, it was not her problem.

Now if she could only stop lying to herself. Shaking her head, she went back to redoing her braid. As long as she didn't think about it, there was no problem on that front. Once she was done, she stepped back into their room where Boba was waiting for her.

"I am ready," she said simply and he motioned for her to walk in front of him.

"Also, Lorena sent a message that the dress is a gift," he sounded curious when he told her. She craned her neck to frown at him. The dress? What did she need a dress for? Where would she even put it?

"What do I need it for?" She asked him, stunned. His mouth twitched in amusement.

"I would give you some ideas if I had ever worn a dress," he opened the door holding it for her, while his left hand pushed her gently forward.

"Do you think _I_ have an idea?" She shot back, hands flying in the air in exasperation. This time his amusement was palpable in the air around them. Her own mouth lifted into a smile from the mirth that was radiating from him in waves.

"Well… maybe on a mission?" he teased and her smile fell and the amusement turned sour making her shiver. Right. How could she forget? An apprentice to Darth Vader would probably have to be diverse in her duties. She rubbed her forearms with how cold she felt suddenly.

"Right, a mission," she mumbled and lowered her head to keep moving forward. Until a hand clamped down on her shoulder. It was Boba's, she knew that.

"Altharya, you will survive," he turned her around forcibly and his hands both clamped down on her forearms, "I will train you in what I know. You will not be left defenceless."

She shrank away from the intense stare he was giving her. Right now she'd prefer his helmet on. How could he stare down right to her bones? Especially with a promise that she knew he was going to make sure he'd keep. Could she even be sure? She felt herself nodding and his grip on her lessened.

"I promise," he said softly and then let go off her. She swallowed hard in response. Maybe she had a chance for once.

Just… what had brought the change in stance? Frowning, she turned around again, feeling his hand on her shoulder blades again.

"Keep moving," he said and sounded distant for once, "Kiani will be impatient."

As if he cared what Kiani thought.

They walked in silence to the rooms that were used as interrogation rooms for the remaining guards. Kiani waited for them already, arms crossed and feet tapping impatiently. As soon as they rounded the corner it was like a stone hit her in the head. She fell against Boba, his hand shifted immediately to the top of her shoulder steadying her.

"What's wrong?" he whispered into her ear, as he yanked them back behind the corner before anyone could have seen them.

"Sorry, I sense too much," she snapped back, pinching the bridge of her nose, "I am fine. Not used to this, I guess."

"Do you need a moment?" he asked, shuffling them further away from the corner. Her mouth was glued shut, she looked up at him as he stared into her eyes. He sighed and leaned against the wall next to her.

"Because of that collar?" he asked, he looked away in the opposite direction to her.

"Probably," she admitted and suddenly the wall of stones near the room seemed to be gone and she could breathe more easily now.

"I am good now," she touched his arm and he snapped his head towards her, looking at her questioningly.

"We can go," she said again.

"You sure?" he asked, pushing himself off the wall.

She nodded and he laid his hand on her shoulder now, more guiding than pushing. At least it seemed and felt that way. It was possible that her mind was too muddled right now. Slowly they rounded the corner and this time Kiani noticed them.

"Good, you are here," she waved them closer, her eyes fixed on Boba, "we have lined up the most likely candidates."

Kiani opened the door to her back and led them into a dark room that was lit from another window to its left side. Dimly lit from another room on the other side where several guards were sitting, all hunched over, stress lines deep on their faces. Somehow she felt sorry for them.

"Can they see us?" She asked when they walked in.

Kiani shook her head. "No, this is a one way mirror. We can see them, but they cannot see us."

"Ah," Altharya looked at the five people who looked like they were having the worst day of their life.

"Why have you lined them up if the guard who helped him is dead?" Boba questioned Kiani once the door was closed behind them.

"We believe that the assassin is trying to blend in with the guards," she explained quickly and pointed at the mirror, "These guards are the ones we believe have the most cause out of everyone here to help the Brents. Meaning _little_ in this context."

"So your vetting just sorted out the less loyal ones out of staunchly loyal ones?" Boba asked and Altharya swore she could near some amusement in his tone.

Kiani cringed at the statement.

"You could say that," she admitted, "However, we have to start somewhere."

"That is fair enough," Boba shot back and they both looked at Altharya now.

"So…?" Kiani sounded awkward and her uncertainty flickered all around her. It was nauseating to sense. Right. She had sensed the assassin. Maybe… she stepped closer to the window and looked at each of the five guards sitting on their respective chairs.

Now how did one consciously sense their intentions? She hadn't been taught advanced Force techniques! Releasing a breath, she tried to remember. What was the important thing Master Renstan had drilled into her before leaving? The breath, one had to control their breathing to centre themselves.

It felt forced when she evened out her breaths, now acutely aware of the stares on her neck. Not helping! Her eyes closed and the cool glass of the window met her forehead. Was she doing this? At least her body had some muscle memory left. The other room was stifling with anxiety and… worry? Yeah, worry. Bright, fluctuating spots appeared in her mind and she probed the one closest to her. It felt warm, kind… no, this was not the one. She opened her eyes; a small woman was sitting on that chair, chewing on her nails. How could she even be considered?

Whatever. Closing her eyes again, she touched the other spots. Nothing dissimilar to the woman. Hmm, all of them nervous, one practically brimming close to a breakdown. Poor guy. She couldn't really blame him for feeling this. But none of them were the assassin or were in any way connected to them. They were back to square one.

"None of them are who we are looking for," she said out loud. It felt like her lungs collapsed from the sheer anger that now radiated from Kiani. She turned around to face the two who were now looking at her. Boba seemed unsurprised, while Kiani… there were no words to describe what she was picking up from that woman.

"You are telling me that the assassin is still running around?" Kiani growled and Altharya wanted to be as far away as possible from her now.

"Yes she is, are you sure the other guards are perfectly vetted?" Boba interceded, redirecting Kiani's eyes onto him.

 _Thank you_.

"We are absolutely sure," she insisted and held her head, "Right… we need to call for a search of the grounds if he is hiding somewhere."

"Do you need us for this?" Boba asked and Altharya looked at him. He wanted them to get out of here now. Something she was not sure she had any feelings on. Lorena was someone who had treated her with some modicum of respect and consideration. Even if it was customary of her to do so, the gesture still counted. Kiani didn't respond.

The anger was gone, leaving the air between them charged causing the hair on her forearm to form goosebumps. Kiani was planning something on top of searching the grounds.

"I think we can shorten the search," Kiani suddenly said and Altharya felt Boba tensing up as if she was touching him.

"Do you need _us_ for it?" he asked, sounding strained.

"Yes," Kiani drew that out, now focusing back on Altharya. Oh no. Anything involving her was going to end badly!

"We can put the assassin in a false sense of safety and use _you_ as a bait to draw him out," Kiani pointed at her with her index finger.

Bait? Her? Was she trying to get her killed?

"No," Boba stated harshly standing in front of Kiani, towering over her. Though, Kiani only lifted her chin in defiance. That woman had guts.

"It is a sound idea," she defended herself and Boba glowered at her. Any lesser person would have cowered away by now.

"And what is stopping us from walking out of this house right now?" Boba challenged and the anger between those two spiked and Altharya had to pinch her lips. That blow exchange was going to be _interesting_. To say the least.

"As far as I know the reward is _substantial_ ," Kiani taunted and Boba groaned.

"I actually do not care about that money," he hissed back and this time Altharya's eyebrow shot up in surprise. Since when? This was new. When had that happened?

"What about an assassin on your heels once you leave without our support?" Kiani threw out now and Altharya had to slap a hand on her mouth. Well this was an argument.

"You forget who I am," Boba deadpanned and Kiani sighed. She just didn't know how to argue with Boba.

"We cannot allow the Arions to die," she sounded so exhausted now and Altharya felt sorry for her. When was the last time she had slept? Actually had a restful sleep? Probably not at all. Before either of them could argue, Kiani continued to talk, "if they do, there will be war."

Kiani looked at them pleadingly now and… she understood now why. War. Would she be able to live with herself if they walked away and millions of people died because of that? She looked to Boba now who seemed not moved. At least he didn't say anything.

"And any other ideas that do not involve putting her at risk of actually _dying_?" he pressed forward and Altharya knew that Kiani had won the argument. Though, maybe she should speak up.

"I will do it," she said loudly. Louder than she had intended. She cringed slightly when both Kiani and Boba swivelled around to glare at her.

"No!" Boba thundered, looking between her and Kiani who had set her jaw in a determined line.

"Alright," Kiani started before Boba shoved her to the side as he stormed over to Altharya.

"Boba," Altharya held her hands up to pacify him.

It at least stopped his stampede towards her, leaving his momentum between them as he swung around, unbalanced. Kiani had steadied herself again and now glared at the two of them.

"I swear to the four-eared nexu, you are going to jeopardise everything," Kiani raged at him, fists swinging around her.

"And endanger her?" Boba fired back, now pointing at her, "I know how you are. The Arions are more worth than anyone else. She is _expendable_ in your eyes!"

"That is not what I said!" Kiani snapped back, sounding horrified. Altharya opened her mouth to interrupt the two of them. She had decided, for Force's sake!

"But it is what you meant!" Boba argued now, his right hand wandering close to his blaster that was holstered at his side.

"No! I just want…"

"I know what you want. But I won't let you put her at risk for something you can use the Arions for!" Boba deadpanned and Kiani shook her head, preparing to shout back.

"And I said yes!" Altharya finally yelled, silence falling over the three of them. Stunned silence. Boba… he was like a blank slate in the Force. It was concerning. Kiani felt relieved, not that she could blame her. If what she said was true… war would come. If the suspicion of Brent involvement proved to be true.

"Are you mad? No, scratch that, you are!" Boba shouted and she felt like something was weighing her down at how desperate he sounded.

"Haven't we already established that?" she threw back at him and he glared at her. He was seething underneath, she could sense it simmering. He groaned and rubbed his temples.

"No. We are not risking it," he doubled down and a streak of stubbornness emanated from him. They were not going to argue their way past him now. He would only dig himself further into his position and just storm out with her.

"Wouldn't you and the guards be looking out for me?" She threw the question on the table, earning a grateful look from Kiani. She sent her a brief smile, if it helped she could not really tell. Boba remained silent, just stared straight up at the ceiling. He was grinding through thoughts, that much she knew, only listening with half an ear.

"We'd be posted around the perimeter and with you she will be safe," Kiani joined in on pleading with him. Not really pleading, but imploring.

"And I should trust _you_?" he growled suddenly, now bristling which made him seem bigger than he was. A shiver ran down Altharya's spine. How had Kiani not relented yet?

"Do you have another option?" Kiani commented flatly, crossing her arms in defiance.

"I…" he started and stopped, looking back at the ceiling, thinking.

"Maybe you should think about it for a while," Kiani suddenly suggested smoothly and nodded to Altharya.

"I hope you can convince him, otherwise we are out of ideas," she mentioned and then she was out of the door closing it behind her.

"Fine," Boba snapped his hands in his hair now. He was stressed, not angry. It was easy to confuse the two, she would just have to keep it in mind for the next time. Was it best to let him calm down first? Having him rage more would not help anyone. Neither her, nor him nor Lorena. Well… she only really cared about Lorena at this stage. So she stood and waited. He'd be receptive at some stage.

She did have to wait for approximately half an hour before he could be talked at reasonably.

"Do you really want to throw yourself at their mercy," he had asked, finally wanting an answer. Sighing, she replied.

"You heard her, if we do not catch that assassin there will be war."

"There will be war one way or another," he deflated, looking pleadingly at her. Unfortunately for him, she was not going to take that without an explanation. She had made her decision, he better have a good argument to make her change that stance.

"How can you be so sure?"

"Altharya, someone killed Senya. That someone will have to pay," he countered.

"And how can we be sure that the Brents are behind all of this?"

"Even if they aren't directly, the political climate doesn't allow them to let it slide either. Whoever did, will bear the consequences. There is going to be war. Against whom is the only question that is open," he answered and stepped in front of her. She had to crane her neck slightly to look at his face.

"Shouldn't we bring this person to justice though?" she asked and his face scrunched up.

"Justice?" he sounded incredulous. Disbelief flooded her, making her pinch her lips. What was so ludicrous about that idea?

"Yes. Justice," she stubbornly repeated.

"Justice is dead," he said tonelessly, now a blank slate again, leaving her winded. How did one argue against that? If only… Justice wasn't dead. No. She refused to believe that.

"Maybe we can change that," she argued and his face softened. But she knew he was still uncertain. Just out of his depth.

"I cannot let you die either," he laid out his other major objection. Her protection.

"Surely the guards aren't that bad?" she joked and earned herself an annoyed glare.

"Don't joke about that," he hissed and she shrugged at him.

"You will be there as well."

He seemed uncertain now, unbalanced, as he frowned down at her. No reply came so she spoke again.

"I have faith in you."

He froze, eyes widened as he just stared at her. Shock crackled around him and she felt the charges on her nose and cheeks. Which were flaming by now. Had she really just said that? What had come over her?

She really needed to sew her mouth shut occasionally. This was embarrassing.

He definitely thought she was insane now! Not that it was an improvement, but she didn't need to prove it at every corner! She looked down to not have to look at him for a moment. So they stood there, not really looking at each other and not really wanting to talk to the other either. Seconds, minutes ticked by and her mouth stayed glued shut.

 _But_.

She had said the truth.

She _had_ faith in Boba to make sure she would not die. What was the point in lying? Even if his competencies were going to be the death of her, at least she could make sure that a war will not break out immediately with all the Arions dying.

Silence still reigned over them and it started weighing down on her shoulders. Words were eluding her though. What could be said that was resembling some intelligent speech?

"Boba," she tried talking softly, "we both want this to end. Please, at least try it with me."

Now she looked up to him again and for once he was open with her. At least his face seemed open and in the Force his emotions were more tangible. He had decided and she braced herself by crossed her arms across her chest.

"Only one try," he relented finally and he released a breath which washed over her in the Force. He had resigned himself to doing this. Frowning she looked at him. Exhausted was the other thing that was present on his face and just plain stress. So that been the sour undertone in his presence. Plain old stress.

"Should I tell Kiani?" She asked, turning away to go to the door.

"Alright," he sighed and his presence dimmed noticeably.

So he was doing it consciously. Interesting. She opened the door to see Kiani conversing quietly with another guard a few steps away from the door. Good. There was no way she could have heard anything they had said.

"Kiani?" She called out for the woman who had her back to her. Kiani turned around quickly, waved the other guard off and walked over to her.

"And?"

"One try," Altharya shrugged and Kiani sighed.

"We will only need one," Kiani sounded determined and her jaw tightened. Then they walked back into the room with a waiting Boba who just stared at the two of them. Kiani didn't even acknowledge him anymore, only pulled out a data-pad from a pouch on her uniform.

"While you two were still deciding, I have asked our best strategists to start working on a plan to lure the assassin out," she started pulling up a holographic display of the mansion's layout. Altharya squinted at the harsh blue glow in the relative darkness they were in.

"What have they come up with?" Boba asked shifting on his feet, so that he was leaning towards them. He was paying attention. Altharya shot him a small smile, but he didn't react to it. Her smile fell. Had he even seen it?

 _Get a grip, if he did or did not see it, it wouldn't matter._ Shouldn't _matter_.

"We will announce tomorrow that we have _concrete_ evidence that the assassin has departed the compound," she explained curtly, the holo-map zooming onto a certain location.

A courtyard in the western part appeared.

"However we will also announce that the Arions have granted you some reward. There has been a briefing already done by Eric Arion," she looked to Boba now who inclined his head towards her, "He is prepared to increase your payment should this go successfully."

"Good," he commented and turned his attention back to the map, "What else has he said?"

"He wishes for this to be done as quickly as possible. So the plan of baiting the assassin will be in motion the next day after the announcement," Kiani sighed and displeasure spiked around her.

"So he wants to risk the assassin catching on it?"

"Given how neither an Arion or Miss Struhn are dead, they would be desperate, was his reason in having no delay."

"You are banking a lot on them desperately trying to finish their contract," Boba countered, frowning at Kiani who shrugged.

"We need to get rid of this situation immediately," she sounded robotic citing another reason and annoyance glimmered before it was gone.

"And risking not getting any results?" Boba questioned, pointing towards a tiny red dot blinking in the middle of the court yard.

"Mr. Arion believes that dangling Miss Struhn in front of their nose will make them throw caution in the wind," Kiani said and Altharya felt herself bristle.

Hang on. She was still here!

"You guaranteed my safety," she reminded them both sharply. Kiani rolled her eyes which made Boba glower at her.

"You know my conditions," he held up a hand making Kiani groan.

"I know your conditions, but the assassin doesn't know any of our safety precautions!" She argued exasperated throwing both of her hands up in the air.

"Let's say you are right, but if I find anything at fault with your preparations, you better have compensation," Boba voiced his warning lowly and the hair on her neck rose at how much space he was suddenly occupying, crowding Kiani who this time _leaned_ away. His upper lip twitched for a split of a second, but he looked positively smug.

"What kind of compensation?" Kiani probed cautiously. Altharya crossed her arms, watching Boba for his reply. Good question. What was the compensation he was thinking of?

"I have an interest in her being unharmed and if she is, I want her body to be turned over to me," he listed off.

Why did he want her body? To bury it?

"Bereavement compensation," he flashed his teeth at Kiani who swallowed. Bereavement money. Only awarded to relatives of deceased people. How was he planning on claiming… never mind. He was demanding to be eligible.

One way to go about it. Hopefully she survived and then she could watch him being disappointed in not getting money out of it. It would be satisfying. Even if it would be short lived.

"I will inform him of your conditions," Kiani muttered before pinching the bridge of her nose, "Can we please get back to the plan?"

"What do we need to know?" Altharya interceded before Boba could poke anymore holes.

"You will be sitting on a bench," Kiani explained, pushing a button causing the map to zoom onto a stone bench circle around a … it looked like a statue. She wasn't too sure.

"And there is one good spot that can be easily reached for the assassin," Boba quirked an eyebrow, but thankfully did not interrupt.

"We will bank on the assassin setting up in that spot while we have a sensor alerting us if they set up there," another red spot started blinking a bit further away from the bench she was supposed to be the bait on.

It sounded strange when she thought about it.

"How can you be sure that the assassin will set up there?" Boba asked, staring at the set up on the table now.

"They would be pretty dumb not to take a prime spot," Kiani argued.

"And where would security set up if we are at that stage?" Boba countered.

"We will have more details later. Mr. Arion mentioned that you might want to choose your position and we will work around that," Kiani suggested, shutting off the projection, leaving them in relative darkness.

Her eyes adjusted to the lighting soon after, seeing Boba relaxing his stance a tiny bit.

"I assume you will forward me the details later?" He asked, already turning away from Kiani.

"Of course."

"Good," then he was in front of her, a hand on her shoulder turning her around.

"Send it to my data-pad," he sounded bored.

Then they were back in the corridor, hurrying to their room. She kept her mouth shut. For now. Until they got to their room. Boba did not even pay her any attention, as soon as the door closed behind them, his hand vanished as if he had burned himself. Her gut dropped when he walked past her, back turned until he reached the table at the side of the wardrobe. To say he was not happy was understating the obvious far too much. Heck, even in the Force she could feel him boiling and his mind was racing. Everything was too slippery for her to grasp.

If she could feel this going on, he had slipped on his usually controlled mental shields. Maybe she should prepare herself for them ditching this place in the middle of the night. Awkwardly, she stood in the middle of their room. What could she do? There was nothing for her to do! Nothing to read up on, nothing to watch. No access to the holo-net. Nor could she talk to Lorena.

Staring at the ceiling didn't really sound appealing either. Was there anything she could use to numb her mind to? Another data-pad somewhere?

Narrowing her eyes, she looked around. Surely they had one lying around? Would she get one if she requested? She shot a look to Boba who was doing something on the table, deep in thought. His thoughts more muted now, withdrawing from her mind until they were a faint blip around her.

He was cooking something up.

Oh well, she was going to be dragged around anyway. Not that she could influence it. She had said her piece.

Hm.

Maybe there was a data-pad in the nightstands. She opened the drawers and thank the Force, there was a data-pad in it. One of the newer versions too. Grabbing it, she sat down on her bed, turning it on.

"What are you doing?" Boba's sudden question made her head snap up in surprise. He had turned his around to her looking at her curiously.

"I'll wait until I am needed again," she said holding the datapad up.

"Where did you get that?" Boba sounded suspicious stepping away from the table. No desk. The flickering off of a holo-projection behind him distracted her briefly. So he had gone straight to planning.

"It was in one of the nightstands," she told him lowering her hand with the data-pad. He was in front of her now, holding his right hand out asking if he could take it. Reluctantly she gave it to him. Was there cause for concern? She watched silently as he pushed a few buttons, the data-pad humming to life, while he seemed to look for something before he handed it back.

"I guess it was given to us and we haven't noticed," he shrugged, not looking at her anymore. Did he hate this set up that much? Releasing a breath, she looked down on the data-pad whose display showed the usual applications.

Poking him would have to wait until he accepted that. If he saw it fit to rip her from her life on Teth, he could deal with a day or two of being annoyed with her. She would take those small acts of revenge.

Only if it didn't make her feel so hollow in the process. Was it even her trying to get back at him?

Yes. She wanted to… What exactly did she want?

No answer came to mind. She wanted to inconvenience Boba, but also what would change if she did? There was no way he wouldn't just brush it off and still hand her over in the end. Why expend the energy?

Her mouth felt dry and she had to swallow to loosen her tongue from the roof of her mouth. Sitting cross-legged on the pillow, she opened the holo-net.

It felt so good to finally be able to look up news again. Would she be able to send Struhn a message? Her heart stuttered and her chest grew cold. How could she forget? How could Boba forget? This was her opportunity to tell Struhn and he could….

Her stomach dropped and pressure built behind her nose and her eyes. What could he even do? Stuck on Teth and stuck in that clinic. How could he just up and go up against Boba Fett? Something she would not advise anyone, medically speaking.

At least she could… tell him? Like write a goodbye letter to thank him for raising her when Master Renstan left.

That was morbid. Even if he hadn't seen her as an adoptive daughter in the end, which would have… Oh she should not even think about it. She will never know and she should forget about it. Never to wonder about whether he was just her mentor or something akin to a daughter to him.

It hurt. Force, it hurt.

Her fingers were shaking when she opened up a message box, only to hover over the keys and not type in anything of meaning. His address had been memorised and typed out without her noticing. Though, should she? Beside it being cruel, hadn't he hidden away from the Empire for other reasons other than her being in his care? Her contacting him would only compromise this.

She closed the message box again. Maybe it was best to forget him and Teth. That was where Soren's body still was. No traditional funeral according to his people's ways. All her fault.

"Altharya?" Boba suddenly asked from across the room and she jerked her head up.

"What?" she snapped and her voice broke at the end. He frowned at it and she could feel muted confusion swinging between them.

"You are not okay," he commented, not even bothering to ask. There was no answer to it, so she could only look at him. He sighed and walked over to her, the holo-projection still flickering on the desk, to sit down on the edge of her bed next to her.

"Are you shaken about the corpse?" he asked bluntly and she immediately shook her head. No. Though, she should lie on this.

"No," she finally pried her teeth apart, "I am just realising I can never go home."

It was the core truth of the matter. She could never go back to who she was.

Boba didn't respond. At least he had the decency to look away briefly. Good. He was the reason why she was here! What could he even say to that? Nothing really.

"Home is what you make it," he said not bothering to look at her. It was not the reply she expected, but somehow it was not an answer aimed directly at her either. The Force around him was silent, whatever undercurrents coming from him were too muted to pick up.

"What are you saying?" She chose to probe him. It was not on her to puzzle out what he meant or hinting at. He looked back to her, eyes hooded with … oh. He was remembering. His father?

"I am saying that not everything is lost," he finally said and she frowned. Everything was lost. Him saying otherwise didn't make it true.

"How?" she questioned, now setting the datapad aside to lean forward, her face close to his. He didn't retreat, but his eyes dropped from her eyes to the blanket. Then he looked back into her eyes. His throat bobbed with a heavy swallow.

"When I lost my father," he started and she opened her mouth to tell him that he didn't need to tell her all of this, but closed it when he gained a resolute glint in his eyes, "I was tossed around between people until I could fend for my own. Only then was I able to find my own home, or more it found me."

He was… being honest. There was no deceit that she could feel, but why would he tell her all of that? Her! A walking credit bag that he just needed to ensure didn't die.

Or maybe he didn't view her that way. Not anymore at least.

Now that was a thought.

A very interesting thought.

Did she want to dive into that? To even think about what it meant? To her?! She already had trouble discerning him from the man who had shown concern, care towards her and the ruthless bounty hunter who had murdered people so he could collect the bounty on her.

It was confusing.

He was still looking at her and she could not find it within herself to look away either. There was this … sadness splashing between them and she wanted to reach out to comfort him. Would he welcome that comfort though? Her hand twitched from where it had clenched the blanket. His eyes locked on the small movement, not moving from it. Slowly he lifted his hands from the edge of the bed and his right hovered slightly over her left cheek, while his upper body twisted so he was facing her more directly. His fingertips just a hair width away from her skin and she could practically feel the touch, even when it was not there. She inclined her head towards it and he didn't take his hand away either.

There they were, his hand cradling her cheek and his fingers curled around her ear. His thumb brushed over her cheekbone to settle underneath her eye. It was comforting to her, warmth spreading from where he was touching her. Even her stomach felt weird, all fluttery. What was that? Even what was coming from him was confusing. There was this tentative feel of comfort, warmth and care coming from him. She could get lost at how open he was letting himself be to her.

Her left hand settled on his knee. Where else was she to put it? It would have been awkward if she hadn't done anything with them.

It all ended far too quickly and she had to suppress a whine when he withdrew his hand and dropped it back into his lap. All closed off to her now as well.

But the glimpse was enough to leave her wondering for hours probably days. Just in how much trouble were they really?

"What happens now?" she asked out loud to which Boba sighed in response.

"I'm still trying to figure out where I'll stake out while we bait the assassin," he then replied looking back to the still switched on holo-projection.

Had he still not figured that out?

"Is there a problem?" she probed carefully, eyeing his face for any tension.

"I do not like how sure they are about that the spot they pointed out will be the location where the assassin will be," he complained, rubbing his face with his hands in frustration.

"Surely the assassin doesn't know everything about this place?" She wondered to which he shook his head.

"You have to assume that they know everything, so you cannot be blindsided. Especially if those spots are on a map," he looked back to her briefly before dropping his eyes.

"Fair point," she conceded. What else? Not that she could really help him in this.

"You said you felt the assassin?" Boba asked flatly, face blank. He didn't like asking this, even someone Force-blind could see that.

"Yes," she frowned. What was he getting at?

"If you feel _anything_ , you will tell me," Boba ordered, looking now as if he had bitten on something sour.

"How can you rely on me feeling him in time?" She asked. The Force was fickle in its favours.

"I am not relying on it, but at this stage I am taking everything I can get," he bit back.

"How bad is it?" she deflated. Kiani hadn't seemed too concerned?

"Do you trust them to look out for you if their only priority are the Arions?" he asked bluntly with a quirked eyebrow.

Alright. He had a point. Their main priority were the Arions, never her. The only value they both had were the key to finding the assassin. Her gut dropped at the realisation even if she had suspected it all along. To have it spelled out was another thing all together.

"So what do we do?" she asked him.

"We establish our own back-up plan," he replied.

"Alright, I follow you so far. But what do you have in mind already?"

"I am looking for a spot where I can have those prime hiding locations in view and we need a way to communicate," he explained while getting up from the bed.

"A way to communicate?" She asked. There were ways to communicate, sure. Earpiece with integrated microphone or hand signals.

"Well you cannot just shout if you sense him," he snarked and she rolled her eyes at him. She knew that! But how?

"You know what I meant!" She shot back and he threw her a smug grin.

"Have you ever heard of SVR?" he asked and she had to shake her head. It wasn't even an acronym she knew on top of her head either.

"It is a device that takes your vocal muscles and tongue movements into account and translates into sound in an earpiece which," he tapped his ear, "you and I will be wearing."

"Do you have them on you?" She had to ask. It sounded complicated and why would he have that on him anyways?

"Of course. You always go everywhere prepared," he showed his teeth now with his grin. He was thoroughly enjoying this.

"Prepared for what? Surprise team up?" She joked causing Boba to snort. Amusement spiked up around him.

"Especially because it is _unexpected_ ," he joined in and she could feel herself grinning back with him.

"How often does that happen?" She teased.

"Ohhh… wouldn't you want to know," he winked to her before getting up, "But I still need to figure out where my position will be," he grumbled walking back to the holoprojection.

"Hey, would you do me a favour?" He asked before she could even think of any reply to everything he had just said. She cocked her head to the side. A favour? Her? This was going to be good.

"See what they are saying about this whole situation on the system news, especially on Brent and Arion side," he said and she could feel his shoulders tensing from that distance.

"Why?"

"I do not like being left out from not knowing how fast this bantha shit will hit the fan," he complained as he leaned back over the projection.

"Alright…" she muttered opening up the holo-net.

They were up until late into the night for Boba to figure out something that was close to his liking while she scoured the range of new organisations spouting their various renditions of what happened. Most common theme: sympathy. Even the Brents had released an official statement about how their thoughts were with the Arions even among the ongoing tensions. Lorena's and Senya's mother had declined to make a statement from where she currently was. The sites that spouted some conspiracy theories were at least somewhat amusing.

At least there was no news of the compromised mansion. Boba only muttered about something going right for once.

Altharya shifted on the bench she was sitting on. It was not uncomfortable, with pillows draped over the white stone, but she could feel more than a dozen pair of eyes on her back and it was driving her nuts.

"Would you please sit still?" Boba's annoyed voice crackled in her right ear.

It felt weird to have those electrodes sticking to the outside of her throat, hidden underneath the collar of her shirt. Even weirder was that she didn't need to move her tongue or mouth for Boba to receive her messages.

 _I think I underestimated how many eyes will be on me._

Suppressed chuckling could be heard and she sighed. She was complaining to the one who didn't want to do this in the first place. But he was the only one who could even hear her. At this stage she had a feeling he was enjoying how much she hated the pricking at the back of her neck. The data-pad in her hand she was pretending to read something on felt heavy in her hands. She had already forgotten what was displayed on it.

Maybe she should pretend to open other applications or click something. Make it seem more… natural, as Kiani had put it before they had moved into positions. Kiani was around somewhere. But she was more occupied with trying to sense the assassin moving into her perimeter.

So far no luck. That familiar presence had not even graced her senses yet. Not that it meant anything. Boba and the Arions security around Kiani were on the lookout with their entire tech that was not explained to her.

Frankly she had more confidence in their methods than with her rather fickle grasp on the Force.

 _Anything_? She sent to Boba. It took a while before he responded, "All clear for now."

She blew a stray strand of her hair out of her face. No braid today, so they could disguise the earpiece in her ear more easily. Wasn't too much of a problem, but she couldn't seem like she was not too used of having her hair on her neck or ears. Why did she have her hair at this length again?

Vanity.

And something she was not going to change anyways. Why was she even complaining? This was her idea! Or more, she persuaded Boba to let them pull this stunt. Which was turning out to yield no results.

Please for once could something go according to plan?

"I heard that," Boba commented suddenly.

 _Then stop listening._

"Hard not to," he snarked back and she bit the inside of her cheek to prevent herself retorting.

He was definitely enjoying this since she could not react visibly to him. At least she found an interesting article to read finally. Shifting the datapad she opened the piece in a medical journal, there was a slight shift in the breeze. She froze. Had it just gotten colder?

 _I am feeling something_.

"Anything specific?" Boba sounded tense as he asked her. Anticipation now drumming all around her. The others knew too. Good.

 _No…_

Lowering her head so that wherever that assassin was they would not see her close her eyes so she could focus more clearly on the shift. It felt like the air was charging around her and… a blip was moving. A blip that when she concentrated on it, felt rather familiar. The assassin.

 _They are moving into position_. _Can't sense where_.

Boba did not answer this time. Could he hear her still? Her shoulder blades numbed down and the feeling of her skin crawling travelled up her spine to the back of her neck. Come on, don't fail her now.

 _Boba_? She probed him again and still no reply came.

Her gut seized painfully as she snapped her head up to look over the landscape in front of her. The assassin had been too slippery for her to grasp their presence completely, but she knew that they were somewhere in front of her. Nothing suspicious could be seen and she deflated as much as her now constricting gut allowed. Was she sure she just had not eaten something weird this morning?

The others knew and their anticipation practically a thick cloud in the air around her and still rising. What was Boba doing?

"I see them," he finally acknowledged and he started moving, "Stay where you are."

 _Alright_.

Hopefully they could intercept the guy in a moment. Boba's presence brushed past hers fleetingly before he was a muted spot among the many in the garden. Guess he had a grasp where they were. Sighing, she looked back down to the datapad. Back to looking normal, not that the hair on her neck agreed with her on that.

"Damn, we lost him. You better move!" Boba's frantic command shocked her into a flinch. Move. Right. Her insides strangely calmed at the order.

But where to? Her body moved on its own, throwing her to the side, abandoning the datapad to fall onto the ground, just as something red zipped from a group of pillars surrounded by bushes. She landed with her right shoulder on the gravel that filled the paths, the tiny stones digging through the cloth into her skin. There was the distinct pop and cracking of stone, making her throw her arms over her head to ward off the stone particles flying all around her.

This was getting old.

"Next time you move when I tell you to," Boba hissed into her ear while she scrambled to her feet. It had come from in front of her. The statue behind the bench should be enough of a cover for now. Crawling she dragged herself behind the chunky block, just as another blaster bolt zipped past where she had just been.

Then guards were swarming all around her, crouching to the sides of the statue with their blasters ready and aiming. Several blaster shots could be heard in the distance, probably Boba and the assassin.

Someone yelled and it sounded as if two bodies crashed into the path on the other side of the statue. So Boba had caught the assassin. Good. Her knees were still shaking as she re positioned herself. Get away or stay here? The guards beside her then started shooting, the sound of their discharging blasters covering all the noise of the fight ensuing out of her sight.

Hopefully they did not hit Boba. She was not equipped to handle anymore blaster wounds!

Kiani suddenly appeared in front of her, grasping her forearms forcefully. She felt herself being yanked to her feet, her knees now locked up. Could she really leave Boba to… Shaking her head she wanted to slap herself. Boba was capable of handling himself. As she was being pulled forward by the older woman, she looked back briefly.

Boba stood to her with his back, his cape flying with his erratic movement to avoid the blaster fire coming his way. Her heart stopped when she finally saw who they had been waiting to confront for days now. Dressed in a guard's uniform, a face mask covering their face, but it looked like a man. A blaster and an energy shield in each hand. He didn't seem to notice them stumbling away from the fight, not with the way his face seemed transfixed on Boba.

She looked back to the path they were running along. Where were they even going? Blaster fire was still ringing behind them as they neared a tree that wound around a pillar.

"DOWN!" Someone suddenly shouted.

Not Boba, one of the guards. Had they meant them?

A small ball flew over her head, the sun reflecting brightly from the metallic surface. A grenade. Before she could formulate another thought, Kiani came to a crunching halt causing the two of them to fall down on their knees when a loud boom rang in their ears, deafening her, her vision swimming. Kiani was on the floor groaning weakly and Altharya had to put her hands on the ground to stabilise herself. Stone and wood were raining down on them, as the tree and the pillar crashed around them with a resounding thud.

This time Kiani screamed. Pain flared up and stabbed her behind the eyes, sprang up in her right leg and it was excruciating. Altharya had to blink several times to clear her vision and refocus her mind on what was happening. She was not injured… no, this was coming from Kiani.

Oh Force. This was bad, Kiani's eyes were rolled back with pain, but her leg. It was crushed beneath the pillar, blood seeping from underneath. It would be a miracle if the leg could be saved. Shifting on her knees she looked behind to see what was going on. Two of the guards were running towards them, just as Boba looked back to lock eyes with her for a split second before snapping his attention back on the assassin. Pain still befuddled her mind, but she felt the satisfaction permeating underneath it all, souring it. He had thrown it to prevent them fleeing and now that he had achieved that… they were a sitting nerf. Her hand closed around Kiani's who squeezed it instinctually as her screaming fell into whimpering.

Then finally the guards were beside her, settling next to her behind the pillar using it as a cover from the incoming blaster fire. One was on his earpiece, shouting.

"We need medevac down in the courtyard, crushed leg," he rattled off robotically as the two of them tried to move the pillar.

Her hands were shaking, even with Kiani's desperate grip. Should she try and see if she could even lift the pillar with the Force? The two guard's faces were contorted with strain as they laboured to even move it an inch. The Force did not respond when she lifted her hand, trying to grasp the object.

Why did it not help her? She looked down to Kiani whose sobs were heartwrenching, tears running down her face. The Force was supposed to be good! Right?

Right now she could not do much, other than offer comfort. How she hated that position. Stroking Kiani's forehead, she looked back to the fight that was still ongoing. Boba was weaving in between the shots that the assassin was firing as if he was weightless, his shots always narrowly missing the assassin who had to block and evade fast to avoid Boba and the guard's fire.

It continued until a shot landed. She had to double over when her chest constricted so painfully that she forgot to draw a breath. One of the two guards who had remained behind, fell over on his back, a smoking hole in his chest. Then something ripped in the Force and a spot fizzled out.

Dead. Numbness overtook her, as she stared at the still shocked expression on the guard's face. She had never caught the name, but she would have never thought of learning their names either. Now they were dead and- she ducked her head to avoid a stray blaster bolt whipping over her head.

That assassin was good; they had known that. But to see it was another matter altogether. He was a match to Boba, at least in her opinion. If he was not, then it was a miniscule difference.

Force… she felt helpless. Unable to help Kiani or Boba. She wanted to cry. Once more she heard the grunts of the two guards trying to lift the pillar.

She had to try again. Who was she to give up after one failed attempt? Hadn't Struhn taught her better? One more try. Surely it was her failing the first time around. Maybe she couldn't lift the pillar on her own yet, like the guards couldn't. Would it work if they combined their strengths?

Drawing a deep breath, she lifted her free hand again. The numbness spread from her chest to her fingers and finally... finally she grasped the pillar and moved it with the efforts from the guards. A gasp escaped her when the pillar finally rolled off Kiani's leg and in front of them, forming a more effective barrier. Scrambling to Kiani's side she looked at the damage. Bone was protruding from skin, blood pooling underneath the thigh. It was broken in several places at least. Chewing on her lip, she decided against prodding for more. They had called for help, with painless diagnosis methods. She looked back to Kiani who now was breathing rapidly. Shock had not abated yet. Hopefully it numbed the pain until the medics arrived. The two guards flocked to her, grasping at Kiani, pushing her away. Did they know what to do?

She grasped the pillar to steady herself and looked over to Boba who was still fighting the assassin. Frustration whizzed past her as yet another shot failed to land on Boba.

But this time, Boba connected, knocking the blaster from the assassin's hand. With a loud yell, the assassin grabbed behind him wanting to draw something forward. Only he did not get that far, Boba tackling him. Both crashed to the ground in a flurry of fists and a blade skittered on the gravel which came to a spinning stop not too far away from her. Her eyes locked on the weapon that now was lying idly without anyone really paying attention to it other than her. Boba and the assassin were still wrestling on the ground. What was Boba trying to do? He could have killed the guy by now.

Unless.

Unless they wanted him alive.

For what, she did not know. Did she really care? No, she didn't.

He deserved to die. No being that had effectively killed a child deserved any consideration of being left to live.

Screw being a Jedi. She hadn't been one since she was eleven. Her nails scratched over the pillar as she climbed over it to stumble towards the weapon. The grunts from the two wrestling near her grew audible now, Boba finally managing to get to his feet with the other swinging at him which got blocked with Boba's elbow. Their boots dug into the little stones, as they pushed against the other, trying to unbalance the other.

Only it was not working for the assassin, Boba was immovable, his hands grabbing the front of the other's jerkin. Her hands closed around the hilt now, the grip cool against her fingers and palm. It was lighter than she had expected, in her memories the practice sabers at the temple had been heavier. A small button was just beneath her thumb.

A vibrosword. Slowly she lifted it up, unused to the weight pulling at her wrist. Her eyes locked onto the assassin who was straining against Boba's hold who had yanked him around so that his back was facing her.

Perfect.

One step forward, her insides hardened. All uneasiness fled from her, numbness taking over as she readied the blade to strike.

How both of them of them hadn't noticed her was beyond her.

Another step, and her vision narrowed down onto a specific spot. Senya was dying a slow death. He didn't deserve a fast one either. If she hit him there, he would die a slow and agonising death. Good. The cold spread from her gut to her chest, freeing her lungs, her breathing becoming more even. Her throat freed up and her nose felt like needles were inside her nostrils. It was like ice that dug itself into her skull when the assassin finally was in her reach.

Then Boba noticed her, he _jerked_ trying to yank them both away from her, as if he knew what she was going to do. But not even he could pull fast enough, when her arm lifted and the sword impacted in the assassin's side. Just where his kidney was. With a yell, the assassin fell, Boba having let go of him. Blood seeped into the stones from underneath the man, his face ashen and a scream seemed to be stuck in his throat.

Heat rushed into her head, down her chest and into her hand. The weapon was so infinitely heavier now, until it slipped from her fingers. It clattered to the ground, as her knees buckled as any strength left her.

She had willingly inflicted a torturous death on a being.

Willingly. No matter how much she thought he deserved it.

Maybe she was the _monster_ ….

She was kneeling on the ground now, the assassin within her arm's reach. But then Boba was in her view, his hands gripping her face forcing her to look at him. His mouth was moving. Where was the sound? WHAT WAS HE SAYING?

With a guttural groan, sound rushed back to her.

"Hey, hey, don't phase out on me," Boba was talking far too fast.

Her brain couldn't quite catch up with him. It felt like his hands were the only thing keeping her upright at the moment. A moment later enough strength returned for her to lift her hands to grasp his that were still framing her cheeks.

"He is going to die," she heard herself state bluntly.

"He was dead one way or another," Boba sighed, "The Arions just hoped to interrogate him before."

She looked into the black of his visor, his face swimming behind it in her mind. Whatever he was feeling, she couldn't really grasp it. His shields were back firmly in their place.

"Guess that is not going to happen," she mumbled and Boba's left hand travelled down to her shoulder blades leaving a soothing cool trail behind.

"Can you stand?" he asked quietly.

Could she? Maybe. She nodded, her hand grasping his hand tighter pulling herself up with it. As soon as she stood, she leaned into his side. Even if for support, it was better than nothing right now. The assassin was still on the ground, but now she saw more guards surrounding them. Their eyes bored into her skin. Relief flooding her senses and she had to close her eyes to attempt to block everything out.

It was over.

They were safe. They no longer had to stay in this house.

Just why did she feel so empty? It should feel more meaningful for what she had done. Boba's arm was around her waist now, steadying her. Was she shivering? She looked up at him, his helmet now underneath his other arm. When had he taken it off?

Then everything descended into a flurry of activity, they were ushered into the house and were sat down in one of the reception rooms with the promise of being attended to in a moment. The quiet of the room, the softness of the chairs they were sitting in. It was a stark contrast to the chaos they had just been surrounded with.

"It is all over now," she finally vocalised. Boba looked at her for a moment, face closed before answering, "Yep. It is over."

He gave a long assessing look.

"How are you feeling?" He probed and she knew that he was asking about the way she doomed the assassin to a slow death.

"Empty," she answered truthfully. His eyebrows quirked, astonishment resonating between them.

"Empty?" he asked to confirm.

"Somehow I thought it would be…" she was grappling for words. What had she expected to feel? Before she could find one, Boba answered it for her, "Comforting? Glad?"

"Yes," she frowned.

"I understand," he said while his face softened, his eyes searching hers, "But also understand that you cannot take it back."

"I know," she countered. Of course she knew. She clenched a fist on her lap, there was no room for regret.

"Look…" before Boba could continue, the door opened again and they both stood up when Eric, Morion and Lorena Arion walked through the doors. All three looking grim and… she felt determination and dread. What were they dreading?

"Mr. Fett," Eric Arion began, his eyes settling only briefly on her, "your payment has been authorised to be transferred to your account," he ended as if they were in a business… No they _were_ in a business transaction.

She wanted to scream. Only her lungs felt deflated, unable to even form a word. Boba didn't speak, his eyes firmly fixed on the three people in front of them.

"You also have our gratitude," Eric Arion continued, sitting down with the others following his lead.

"It was a job," Boba deadpanned earning him a reproachful look from Morion which was halted by Eric holding up a hand.

"We understand perfectly that you are a man of your profession, Fett," Eric sneered before he dropped back into his neutral mask, "You are free to leave now and…" he waved a servant forward who held the vibrosword in his hands. Her gut twisted when the handle was offered to Eric who took it.

"This blade belongs to the Brents," he stated matter-of-factly. His eyes narrowing at the last word, "I hope you understand what this means."

"Repercussions?" Boba asked, leaning back on his chair.

"Indeed, we are still looking to confirm the identity of the assassin. However I know this one. This is the bastard son of the current Brent leader. His name was Teruk Brent I believe."

"Rather gutsy to send a Brent to assassinate an Arion," Boba said, frowning.

"You are right. A risky move. But it happened," Eric remarked lightly now holding the blade towards them.

"I think this would be a good trophy for you," Eric offered and she swore there was disdain dripping from every word. Boba did not react, only took the blade calmly while maintaining his eye contact with Eric Arion.

It was as if the two men were battling, their presences clashing turbulently.

"It will fit with the rest of my collection," Boba said lightly and it sounded like a threat. At least to her. Looking back to Eric, she knew he had heard it too.

"I have arranged a transport back to your hangar. It is waiting for you once you have gathered your things," with that Eric stood up and walked out, Morion following him with the guards and servants filing out then.

Lorena remained seated, giving them both a sharp look. Her mind was shrouded even if her intent to talk to them was clear.

"Altharya, I am glad to have met you," Lorena smiled at her making her heart lighter, "And I hope I will see you again."

"And I thank you for your hospitality and gifts," Altharya responded automatically, the tips of her ears burning. What else was she to say? This was awkward.

"I have taken the liberty to put together some more clothes for you," Lorena shot a thinly veiled glare in Boba's direction. He tensed, but didn't say anything.

"She was never your slave," Lorena finally let the tooka out of the bag and Altharya felt her mouth drop open. To her side, Boba just felt uncomfortable.

"No, she never was," he said carefully, his brows furrowed in suspicion.

"Why then did she have a Force suppression collar on her?" Lorena questioned, her voice low bordering on barely concealed anger.

It definitely was anger that was projected broadly from her. Altharya looked at Boba who looked back at her. Should they tell her? Better not. Vader was another beast to tackle, even as a de-facto leader of a world.

"Force-sensitives are not safe," he explained and it was vague enough to true. Heck, it was true. She was not safe. No one was safe with her either. Her hands still looked normal.

Did the Force condemn someone to be … whatever she had been back there?

"So your solution was to suppress it and hope she would not go insane from being cut off?" Lorena sounded sceptical and Altharya winced. At least she saw what Boba had wanted her to see.

"It was fine," she interceded earning herself a surprised look from Lorena, "I was safe," she looked to Boba seeing him staring surprised at her, "and even with it off, I do not think anyone is really looking for a Force-sensitive here."

Lorena seemed to mull it over in her head, her anger receding rapidly leaving tentative apprehension behind.

"I see…" she said finally.

"Is there anything you need us for?" Boba asked, "We would like to get to our original destination."

Oh. Their hideout until Vader gave the clear for her to be delivered to the slaughter. Her chest tightened at the thought. Even with Boba's training, would she even stand a sliver of a chance with it? Or would she fit right in?

Which was scarier?

"Oh? Where are you heading?" Lorena asked lightly, curiosity shining through now.

"We are heading to Weqret," Boba informed her, caution slipping into his tone.

Why would he tell her? Wasn't the point in laying low that no one really knew where they were? She frowned at the two. There was something she was missing.

"I hear it's beautiful at this time of the year," Lorena commented before rising causing them both to stand up as well.

"I hope I can call on you?" Lorena inquired suddenly.

So this was what it was. Why couldn't she ask this in front of the others? Nervousness permeated the air, stifling it. Hm. Lorena was hiding something. Something they would be tangled in later.

"If you pay," Boba shrugged, his hand seeking out Altharya's shoulder, settling on it as if to root her.

"I can pay," Lorena assured shooting him a grin before it fell, "I can only warn you. For decades the tensions between our families have only worsened. There will be war sooner rather than later. I can only hope I can rely on you."

Somehow it felt like it was not the whole story. She felt Boba nodding beside her.

"You have my contact," he said curtly.

"Good. Let's hope it will never come to that," Lorena muttered more to herself and then louder, "I shall let you leave now."

With that she turned and walked out, closing the door behind her.

When the doors were finally shut, Altharya turned around to Boba who was shaking his head now.

"What was that?" She demanded to know and he held a hand up.

"I don't know either," he admitted before sighing, "and I hope it will not come to the point where I need to step in."

"She said that war will be coming," she stepped closer to Boba who grunted. Unwillingness flared before it was muted. His hand on her shoulder travelled across her shoulder to a semi-embrace, drawing her closer.

"I know what she said and I also know that she does not want the other two to know that she is planning something."

"I thought as much," she smirked up at him which was only reciprocated for a split second.

"The only thing right now is to wait either way. As much as I hate it," he grumbled and looked down at her, something flickering in his eyes. Something she could not quite decipher.

"Even if, do you think you should take it?" she probed and he groaned.

"If the pay is good," he grimaced.

They stood there for a moment, awkwardly in this half-embrace. It was alright. She felt herself deflating onto his chest plate, while her arms wrapped around him.

"What have we gotten ourselves into?" She wondered out loud. He breathed out at that.

"I have been wondering that ever since we left Teth," he said. Her head snapped up in response.

"What is that supposed to mean?" She challenged. Was this a joke?

He wiggled his eyebrows at her. Seriously? A joke?

"How could I know we would be drawn in this mess!" She cried, shoving herself at him as retaliation. It only resulted in him chuckling at the attempt.

"Well… you are a trouble magnet," he teased and she had to hide her face, for it was burning.

"Come on, that was not meant to be bad," he retracted quickly.

"I think we should leave before I attract more of these _incidents_ ," she remarked and he laughed again, chest rumbling.

"Alright, after you."

* * *

 **Note: I looked up vibro weapons and they are basically "ultrasound" weapons. Ultrasound can lead to thermal ablation or mechanical cavitations (on extreme levels and weapons are going for that). Hence Altharya knowingly going in to hit him in the side (where some of the vulnerable organs are and destroying them with it) is seen as cruel.**

 **Please tell me what you thought, it would warm my exhausted heart :) (even if I think this isn't one of my better chapters either)**

 **Chapter 14 is still in the planning phase.**


	14. Chapter 14

**AN: It took a while plotting and sorting out what will happen in this particular arc which is part of another bigger arc that are the Arions (those won't be going anywhere for a while). Got another chapter ready to go in a bit as well. However, I am also on the last stretch for my Master dissertation, so those might be the only updates until I am done with that**.

* * *

"So… what's the place like?" Altharya asked once they had cleared out of the capital city in silence, the ship zipping alongside other ships.

"Isolated," Boba answered curtly, pressing some more buttons in the cockpit.

Helpful.

"Anything else?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. He better not throw in a non-specific description out again.

Boba quirked an eyebrow back at her.

Was he mocking her?

Yes, he was. Damn him. She frowned in response, eliciting waves of amusement swirling in the cockpit. They were soothing in a sense. What would happen now? They were not where they had been before coming to this planet. Was he planning on reverting that?

Could she if need be? Her stomach flipped at the thought of him not being so… she couldn't even put her finger on what his behavior was. Nor what hers was, occasionally. It was like her brain went on autopilot around him.

Why was her body doing all these strange things when Boba just looked at her?

Boba was grinning now, joy radiating and lighting up around him. He was looking forward to going to this place.

"I thought it would be best if you saw it for yourself first," he was practically vibrating under his collected demeanor.

She had to look down. His excitement bouncing off the walls around them was strange. Not that he showed it, but the Force was transparent like it had never been before. What was so exciting about this place? It must be something remarkable if Boba was in higher spirits just thinking about it. Was it a place he went to often? Maybe there was something particular he was looking forward to?

Or someone particular? Her stomach sank just thinking about it. Was there someone he cared for? Not that she would ever know, she would be dead before they ever reached that stage. Or worse, she'd be the thing Vader wanted her to be. Maybe she would have become something similar with the Jedi. No one would ever know, or care.

"How long will it take?" she asked.

"At least half a day," Boba replied, pressing more buttons as the ship ascended further into the atmosphere. Were they trying to leave?

"Is Wegret on this planet?"

"No. It is on another. One of the shared ones between the Arions and Brents."

"They can share a planet without coming to blows?" she asked, both eyebrows shooting up in surprise.

Boba let out a humourless laugh, "They can if the blows are officially not from them."

"Someone like you?"

"Precisely," he answered as they broke atmosphere, now orbiting the planet. The buttons on the consoles were flashing, the ship's computer calculating the position to get to their destination.

"I thought they didn't need you any longer?" she questioned him.

"Not now, probably later. But…" he stopped to press several more buttons as they zipped through space to a tiny bright spot in the distance.

She waited silently until he was done.

"Neither family wants to mix the bounty hunter rabble with their citizens," he scoffed as he leaned back on his chair.

Exhaustion lined his face already, dark bags underneath his eyes. When was the last time he had truly slept? Definitely not since she had been in his charge and it made her mouth draw into a thin line. Hopefully they did not land in a time zone that screwed with their sleep cycle too much. She crossed her arms. There was no point in interrupting him.

"So they created little spots where bounty hunters could settle and have protection from other galactic powers if they did the odd job for their family. Wegret is one for the Arions," Boba explained while rubbing a hand over his right eye.

"So, we're going to an outlaw nest?" She asked.

It wouldn't be any different than living on Teth, but she didn't have to like it either. Bounty hunters weren't the most trustworthy lot around.

"Aye. I got a safe house there," Boba added.

"So why did we land on that planet?"

"I needed to talk to Monts and restock," he admitted, "Monts will come to the house at some point. We kind of share the space there."

She had known he and Monts were friends- just not that good of friends, apparently. Did bounty hunters just become friends between each other?

"Is the house large enough?" she wondered.

"Large enough for us three, maybe four if he decides to bring his kid along," Boba answered, stretching his neck, the muscles twitching as he did it.

"Kid?" she countered, surprised.

How had she not noticed?

"His aide in the cantina is his son," Boba turned to look at her, looking surprised, "You hadn't noticed?"

She shook her head as her answer and bit her tongue. Back then she had completely different things on her mind than to properly see who looked like whom. Not that she needed to bring that up again. For now she could pretend it didn't exist.

"They usually take a few weeks of vacation there to relax. After all, those spots sometimes are attractive tourist spots," Boba continued and she could hear the miniscule head shake even if he did not do it.

"Tourist spot?" she sputtered disbelievingly.

How was a bounty hunter nest a tourist attraction?

"Natural wonders, historic artifacts, buildings… you name it. Most of them were built before the relations went to shite," Boba replied and lifted a hand to massage the side of his neck, "Sometimes I wonder if it is the danger that attracts some of the morons that come around."

"Wegret is one of those?" she asked.

"Not really, but it has a hotel that seems to yield enough profit to keep going."

"I suppose I have to see what brings people to visit the place?" she teased, remembering him saying she should see it for herself earlier.

He grinned, "Aye."

She looked back out of the window; they were still too far away from their destination to properly recognize it as a planet.

"Do you go there often?" she asked softly.

It could very well be his home for all she knew.

"Not as often as I'd like," Boba conceded after a moment of tense silence.

"Bounties keeping you busy?"

"What else?"

"I don't presume to know you," she countered, throwing him a sharp look.

Boba snorted in response, "That would be a first."

She quirked an eyebrow in question. For a long while he just stared at her, face closing off rapidly and the air dimmed. So much for some relaxed companionship.

"Nevermind," he muttered, shifting his eyes to look outside as she was doing.

She ground her teeth together and leaned her head against the headrest. Wegret sounded like it would be isolated enough for them to lay low, but her gut didn't quite like the idea of a law-free zone. Teth had been alright, but only because she had lived there for several years and bounty hunters generally did not go out of their way to entertain children. The ones who did occasionally never came back after a while.

How was Kiani doing? She hadn't thought of checking on her when they left, only focused on getting out. Fingering the hem of her shirt, she wondered briefly if she could ask Boba to ask after her. As quickly as possible, she glanced to Boba who looked like he was in another place with his mind. Maybe not now. Sighing, she looked back outside. The bright spot had grown bigger now and the light reflected back at them had gained a blue tinge. They must have been flying for hours now, her butt feeling numb already. Her feet felt like they needed to run somewhere.

"Are there a lot of people in Wegret?" she broke the silence after it became a bit too unsettling.

He blew out a breath before replying, "I would say it is a rather small community, but…" he regarded her with hooded eyes, "in comparison to Teth, large."

Compared to Teth it would be large. Huh. That was telling her so much.

"Are you on good terms with most of them?"

Boba had to chuckle at her question, "You could say so, but no one is particular close to anyone."

"Except you and Monts," she pointed out.

"That is another story," he admitted.

"Care to tell?" she asked.

He glanced at her before shaking his head, "Monts and I go way back, back when the Empire was just weeks old."

Oh. She had been on Coruscant back then still, sleeping on the street with Master Renstan, waiting for their contact to smuggle them off planet. She waited for Boba to continued, but he didn't say anymore. She bit her lower lip, uncertain. Ask him for more details or leave it? It wouldn't hurt to ask, right? He could always say no.

"How did you meet?" she prodded slowly making him groan.

"Aren't you curious," he grumbled, stretching his legs and crossing his arms behind his head.

"Well… it is odd that two bounty hunters are on good terms," she argued.

He blinked at her, stunned, before he let out a short laugh, "That is true. Why do you want to know?"

"Just curious," she shrugged and he shot her a look that pretty much meant we both know it is not .

"Fine," she huffed conceding, "we all will live in the same house at some stage. Shouldn't I know?"

"Should you?" he threw the question right back at her with a raised eyebrow.

Was he seriously challenging her? Narrowing her eyes in his direction, she tried to come up with another reason. What was he trying to get from her? Right… think… Shouldn't be too hard to come up with another valid reason?

Hang on…

"Look, we are going to be in this town for how long?" she started with another question of her own.

"A long time," he answered still giving her the challenging look, but she saw a glint of dawning realization of what she was about to bring up.

"I don't think you would tell everyone I am your captive," she continued making him frown at the last word.

"True."

"So either you are banking on anyone not asking questions or have already thought of reasons why I would be there."

"Correct."

"Wouldn't it be suspicious if someone who is not your captive didn't know about your friendship with Monts? Maybe just enough to not contradict ourselves too blatantly," she finished her argument.

Boba merely stared at her, expression unreadable. Until a smug grin spread over his face, showing his teeth.

"Clever. I was thinking of introducing you as a temporary partner of sorts and our time there would be to plan and train together for the job," he explained still grinning.

Why was he so smug right now? Made no sense.

"So?" she challenged back.

He had not answered her original question.

"Monts and I met on a bounty actually. We were both contracted to work together," he huffed in amusement.

"I guess you were partners ever since?"

Boba shook his head, "Not always. But we knew we could rely on each other for some."

"What was the job?" she asked now curious.

"Some criminal escaped prison on Belsavis and we were contracted to track him down and… eliminate them for good," he grimaced.

"I take it the job took a while?"

"Definitely took months of tracking and planning. That one was a nasty piece of shit."

"So… after that?"

"After that? Oh we had a nice set up going on. We would go on jobs together for a while then work solo and once in a while meet for a drink," he was looking to the ceiling now, reminiscing.

"As you do," she commented making him huff.

"Do you know what happens to bounty hunters?" he suddenly asks sounding serious suddenly.

"What do you mean?" she asked confused.

"Bounty hunters cannot quit, ever," he explained, staring straight into her eyes.

Never quit? Did that mean… Stars, did that mean only death would make someone stop being a bounty hunter?

"Like… they die before, or?" she asked frowning now.

"It is the only way," he deadpanned, "Either you die on the job or you are hunted for the jobs you have done."

"So?"

"Monts is retired," Boba explained and looked grimly outside the window to the fast approaching planet, "And I am keeping an eye out for anyone being aware of him. So far he is lucky."

"No one interested?"

"Interested? Oh some people would love to get their hands on him, but hey… cannot hunt a dead man," he flashed her a vicious grin which made a shiver run down her spine.

"Dead?" she repeated stunned, "How?"

For a dead man Monts had been talking way too much.

"How do you think?"

"You faked his death?"

"Took a while and some silencing but yeah, he is officially dead under his actual name."

"Monts isn't even his actual name?"

"Of course not. Keeping his old name was too risky."

"What made him retire?"

"His kid."

That was good enough a reason for anything. She looked back outside for a brief moment before looking back to Boba. Something wistful flickered over his face before disappearing completely. Nevermind, dwelling on it would get her nowhere right now.

"Wouldn't people recognize him if he went to Wegret for vacation?" she wondered now.

Boba shook his head, "People tend to be face blind to people of other species, if they are not too distinctively coloured. A Weequay looks like any other Weequay to them, so it is easy for him to blend in."

"Would a citizen want to live in Wegret?"

"He is officially dead, but many Weequay are bounty hunters and there had to be an explanation why he could kick some people's asses without too much question. As I said it took several months of planning and silencing," he explained, sighing now as he uncrossed his arms and leaned forward on his chair.

She didn't reply. It made sense, to some extent at least.

They had reached the planet now, its atmosphere glowing an electric cobalt around the upper half of their window screen. White clouds shrouded much of what was underneath. But she saw the vast blueness of oceans and the brown and green of landmasses scattered throughout, with the occasional white spots sprinkled in between.

Atmospheric entry was smooth, the occasional flame licking past the shield when they descended further until they were flying over clouds that stretched on to the horizon towards the setting sun. It looked pretty, the oranges and pinks glittering underneath them, and she wanted to press her face to the screen and watch it.

It was gone as soon as they broke through the clouds and zipped past mountains. Teth hadn't had many mountains nearby, and the monastery didn't count, in her opinion. Was that snow? The white dusting on the peaks? Surely it must be. Was it as cold as some said it would be?

After a while the mountains gave way to a large stretch of grassland that was littered with rivers, lakes and forests. She could see villages dotted around and when she turned her head to the left, the tall towers of a city.

"We aren't too far off now," Boba broke the silence steering the ship to their right, away from the city.

Towards more mountains? It looked like it. Surely a town could not exist in the mountains? They flew over the first few peaks and the first set of valleys before she finally saw what Boba meant with isolated. It looked like a mountain top had been blown off to create a plateau with a large lake in it, leading to a waterfall crashing down into a valley. It lead towards others, which connected to the grassland outside. There were buildings gathered close to the side towards the waterfall with a forest starting on the other side, which stopped at the beginning of the next peak. There a difference in architecture from one side of the waterfall to the other. One she was more familiar with, but the other? She couldn't really describe it. It looked like huts that were suspended in the air with bridges connecting them and a lift bringing small dots of beings up and down. Beyond that part, large patches of fields stretched until they were cut off like the forest was.

She was not sure how to think about it when they made the last stretch of their descent and hovered over a small house that was more on the outskirts of the town. So many ships were littered in between houses on landing pads or just right next to them.

"Welcome to Wegret," Boba sounded amused and only now she realized her mouth was hanging wide open.

She snapped her mouth shut immediately. If only her face wasn't on fire, she could pretend it hadn't happened. Turning her face away from Boba's stare helped, she hoped. Only now she was aware of his stare prickling at her back making her shoulders tense.

"It's still day time, so we might get some food from the cantina," he suggested into the silence easing the tension slightly, "and get settled in before we start work."

Before she could answer, they were in the landing sequence, the cockpit's rotation preventing her from seeing anything other than the sky.

"Aren't cantinas open all the time?" she asked.

"Ah, yes, but good food? That is time dependent," Boba joked back, unbuckling himself and marching towards the exit, "You coming?"

Sighing, she followed him down the small way out of the ship into a warm evening breeze. She crossed her arms as they walked down the ramp onto the roof. But now she finally saw the sheer amount of beings bustling around. How was it so busy?

"Lots of bounty hunters settle here with their families," Boba suddenly answered her unspoken question and then pointed towards the direction where she could just see the silhouettes of the hovering huts.

"These are the native Rishii," he explained, "lived here before even the split. I think the Arions gave them a huge funding boost to tolerate the bounty hunters."

"There haven't been any problems?" she asked, raising a disbelieving eyebrow at him.

"Not lately, no. The split in living space probably helps," he replied as the ramp retracted and the door to the ship closed. "And the fact that they are the ones providing us with food and supplies while we are one of their main contributions to their economy."

She shrugged. It was new to her that a bounty hunter nest was coupled to an actual village. How much money did the Arions pay them to tolerate people who are considered outlaws by many? Turning away from the sight, she saw Boba walking towards a circular hatch in the roof. Then she looked back and over the edge of the roof. It was a two story home from what she could see so far. Jumping off would only break her ankles, and running away on a plateau was idiotic.

So she followed him as he unlocked the hatch and opened it. A ladder lead down into relative darkness. He stood up again and motioned for her to come to his side. Her feet obeyed and she crossed her arms as she peered down the hole.

"Climb down," he said putting his hands on her shoulders to push her towards the opening.

Slowly she turned around set one foot on the first rung grabbing instinctively at his wrists to stabilize her. She heard an amused snort from above her. Not that she cared, but she'd rather not fall down, either. It was a relatively short descent and she nearly yelped when her feet met the solid floor suddenly.

Darkness surrounded her and she swayed slightly on her feet. Could he at least turn on the lights before sending her down? The sparse light from above didn't really help either to see what was what inside. A shadow passed over her as Boba climbed down himself. She stepped to the side, so he would not land on top of her and her shoulder met solid stone painfully.

Hissing quietly, she clutched her stinging shoulder and watched as Boba closed the hatch, dousing them in total darkness. Great. Now she was completely lost. At least there was a wall she could orient herself on.

"Can you at least turn on the lights?" she snapped at Boba when she heard the thud of someone landing on the floor.

"Afraid of the dark?" he teased and she wanted to throw something at him.

This wasn't funny! She could barely see! For all she knew he was going to lock her away and… and... Her hands clenched into fists and she would have swung after him if she only knew where he was! The Force wasn't being helpful either, swirling just beyond her reach. Calling on it was impossible.

Something rumbled to her side and around them suddenly and she leapt away from the wall. What was going on?

A crack with light spilling into the house opened up in front of her. Dumbfounded she just stood there in the middle of a corridor with Boba shaking with inaudible laughter behind her. He was enjoying this. Biting her lip to keep herself from snapping at him she looked around. A corridor that lead to a window and then she could not see. Window shutters. This must be it!

"Go on," Boba urged now, hands landing on both her shoulders pushing her forward.

At the end of the corridor, one could only turn left down a hall with three doors leading away. Curiously she stared at the plain metal doors before being pushed down a set of stairs at the end of it.

"Those are the bedrooms," Boba explained as they walked down.

"Ah," she muttered.

Which one would she be sleeping in? They walked down into another hall which ended in a door.

"Entrance," Boba said before steering her to the side through an archway into a living room.

At least she presumed this was a living room. Two couches with a holo-net projector with shelves dotting the walls. It was rather plain, nothing really personal except for a small figurine on top of a shelf next to her. Other than that datapads or boxes were crammed into the shelves. A small table was to the side of the holo-net projector.

How the room was filled but felt so bare at the same time was puzzling. At least the couches looked comfortable, even if they looked like they had seen better days. With a small nudge, Boba guided her further to the back where a table was crammed to the far end of the wall with five chairs stacked on top of each other next to it. Was this where they were going to eat? A thick layer of dust covered the top of the table and chairs.

"How long has it been since you have been here?" she asked stunned and looked back to Boba.

Boba scratched the back of his neck before replying, "For me? Eight months. No clue about Monts or Kertan."

"Seems like this place needs a good cleaning," she remarked off-handedly, shaking her head.

Boba shuffled slightly and then walked past her to another archway that lead, she had to peak around his side, to a kitchen. It was a relatively small kitchen, not big enough to fit more than two people in.

"Where's the 'fresher?" she asked.

Boba pointed to his left where a door was between two packed shelves. No wonder she had missed it. Slowly she opened it, lights flickering on as soon as she opened the door further. It was a roomy fresher with the necessities in it. Nothing to really complain about. Their stuff was still on the ship, now the question was when would they take them out?

Her skin tingled then, goosebumps spreading down her arms. She could practically feel the room, the wall and its cracks. Was that Boba in the next room? He was searching for something, a determined streak colouring his presence. It was comforting to sense it all again. Slowly she retreated from the fresher, closing the door behind her and watched how the dust particles floated in the light that fell through the window. How had she not noticed this before?

It took Boba a few minutes before finding what he had been searching for. Turned out to be a droid, one she hadn't really seen before.

"What kind of droid is it?" she asked pointing at the folded up chassis.

"A cleaning droid," Boba elaborated setting it down on the floor in the living room, "it only cleans. No personality, you know. Was so cheap they threw it after us. Apparently its personality core got fried and the owners couldn't find a replica. Neither could we."

"So… it is just," she was struggling to find the right word.

What was a droid without its personality core?

"A machine," Boba finished for her and pressed something on its back.

A loud whoosh could be heard before the limbs jerkily untangled themselves and a medium height droid was standing up to her waist. It beeped several times before walking awkwardly towards the kitchen area.

"It is an old model," Boba added with a shrug, "We should let it do its job and while we wait get some food."

Reasonable and… her stomach rumbled slightly at the suggestion and she clutched a hand to it briefly. Definitely hungry too. Nodding she turned to him to leave.

"Is the cantina far away?" she asked and Boba shook his head.

"The cantina is a bit more central, but we will be walking for only a short while," he explained and motioned for her to go into the entry hall.

He unlocked the door with the swipe of a card and opened it. By now the breeze had cooled a bit with the sun now fully setting on the horizon. On Teth that meant the cantina would be picking up most of its business. Probably the same with this one, given this was partially a bounty hunter nest. Even if sanctioned by the ruling family. As they walked down the road, more people were seen out and about. More Rishii, Twi'leks, Nautolans and... was that a Trandoshan? Not that Boba let her stop to see properly, always nudging her when she slowed down. But the town looked nothing like Teth. Teth had been mostly practical block buildings with the occasional personal touch on the windows or entrances, but here? Here the houses were more… she didn't know the word- elaborate, maybe? Why else would a bounty hunter need a tower on one side? Or a random statue in one yard? By the time they reached a junction she was shaking her head at the scattered architecture and twists to them. Boba's house was nothing compared to some.

"You should see some others," Boba had caught on to her amazement when she had not talked for a while.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"You should see what some bounty hunters get on Taris or Nar Shaddaa. This here would be a slum compared to those," he replied lightly, turning onto another road.

"Given what I have seen with the Arions, I really do not need to imagine more," she grumbled and Boba laughed.

"If you think that is too much, you should see some of the Hutt palaces out there," he chortled.

"I'm good, thank you very much," she shook her head, but her mouth was twitching into a smile already.

"We are here now," Boba pointed to one of the buildings.

It was a rather circular compound with some neon signs floating around. Flashy didn't even begin to describe it.

"Oh stars…," Boba cursed suddenly pointing to one of the signs.

"What?" she instinctively asked before reading it.

"Huttball night," he groaned in response.

Huttball night? Oh Force, noooo. Those were the bane of her existence when the galactic championship was on. Every three years, the best teams of the galaxy competed for the chance at the most sought after Huttball trophy. They'd compete for at least two months before a winner emerged. On match days, the cantinas would be completely packed with the entire town and more often than not, she and Struhn had to patch up the aftermath of more than a few cantina brawls.

This time she probably wouldn't be the one getting asked. A nice change, for once.

"Is it that time again?" she complained and Boba nodded his head.

"I just hope they still have enough food," he muttered as they approached the cantina.

Up close they could see the tightly packed area to one sight with a huge holo-screen set up. From what she could see the usual pre-match analytics were going on.

"Which teams are playing?" she wondered out loud when they had to push themselves through the crowded entry.

"The Stinging Colicoids and the...," Boba looked up to the sign, "the Snapping Thrantas."

"Balmorra versus Alderaan? That is going to be interesting," she remarked seeing several blue and purple shirts marking the wearer's loyalty.

This was going to be a long evening.

"What an understatement," Boba retorted as they finally had made their way to the bar.

"Fett, long time no see!" a muscular tall woman called out and Boba winced.

"Terha, you haven't changed one bit," he greeted the Togruta as she sauntered her way over to them.

Blue striped lekku shook with a chuckle when Terha put her yellow-skinned hands on the bar.

"Are you staying for a while?" she seemed genuinely curious.

"Yep," Boba replied, "can we have the usual?"

"We?" Terha frowned as she asked.

Only then did she notice Altharya.

"Ohh," Thera's said leveling her with a purple stare, "Not every day Fett here brings a guest along."

Altharya quickly glanced to Boba who was facepalming, mortification radiating from him. Looking back to Tehra, she realized that it had been a joke meant to embarrass him. Her face heated up and she wanted to crawl somewhere else. Had Tehra really just implied…? Force, she would never get that out of her head now.

"No?" Tehra teased further, now leaning with one elbow on the bar winking to Boba who now looked at her stoically, "Fine. The usual twice. I will bring it over if you can find a place to cram yourself to."

"Always the hostess, Tehra," Boba commented drily while handing her a handful of credits.

His mortification waned as soon as Tehra took them and gave him a warm smile.

"Good to see you back," she said.

Before Boba could open his mouth to reply a patron yelled from the other end of the bar, "Another round!"

Tehra shot Boba an apologetic look before hustling over to the patron who looked like he was reasonably drunk already. All before the match had even begun.

"Guess we have to find a table," she suggested pointing towards the darker corner of the cantina that wasn't completely crowded with Huttball fans.

"We would be lucky if we don't have to share," Boba commented.

They had to shove their way through the mass of people before finally finding a table that was empty except for a Rodian that was slumped over the table top, snoring. Their breath stunk to the sky of alcohol. Urgh. She crinkled her nose, looking to Boba, who shot her an amused grin. Then he patted the space next to him and she quickly slid there, away from the reeking Rodian. Quickly she shot him a grateful smile to which he inclined his head slightly.

"Have food and then walk back?" she had to speak loudly.

Otherwise Boba who was right next to her would not hear her. Her throat was going to be raw tomorrow if she had to do this a lot tonight. Wonderful…

"That is the plan," Boba answered as he leaned down to her so she could hear, "But I think it is more likely that we will be sitting through the entire game."

"Why?" she asked frowning.

Surely the food didn't take that long to make?

"Pretty sure we aren't the only one currently waiting for ours," he said before nodding over to the other tables in the room.

Sure enough, there were plates on some of them while on others the patrons looked occasionally towards the bar as if expecting something.

"Is Tehra doing this on her own?" she asked incredulously.

"Eh," Boba craned his neck as if trying to see something, "I think I see two of her aides scurrying around. It's just really busy."

Just then massive cheer rippled through the gathered crowd close to the broadcasting screen. She turned her eyes away from Boba to see the screen change from the analytics board to a short intro sequence of the championship with the camera whizzing across the field while the two competing teams filed out of their cabins with sponsor adverts flickering above their heads. Soren had been a Huttball enthusiast, dragging her to the showings in their cantina if she was free. If not, he occasionally made her watch the replays at either her or his home.

Oh Soren. How could she have forgotten him? She lowered her eyes to stare at the table top. Hopefully someone found and buried him, or returned the body to his parents, if someone went to the temple in the first place. Her eyes were burning and she had to blink to get rid of the irritating feeling. No tears this time. Strange. She glanced over to Boba who didn't seem to notice her and just looked towards the screen. The names of each player were currently rattling off and some names were familiar.

The Balmorran anthem started, a few people starting to bawl the lines alongside the singer in the stadium. It was so much like Teth and given how intoxicated some of the people belting loudly were, this was only going to get worse.

Hopefully there were not too many fouls. Given how the Alderaanian backers were now trying to one-up the Balmorrans, it'd be a miracle if the lashing out by the losing side would be kept to a minimum.

"What are the normal reactions around here?" she asked Boba once she was sure her voice could not crack.

"What do you mean?" Boba asked looking back down at her again.

"On Teth we had a lot of brawls once the matches were done and…," she could not finish her explanation because Boba was now laughing as if she had just made a jest.

"They would be dumb if they did. Tehra is rather strict and capable of enforcing what she wants in here. And this is the only place where most can get their booze," he chuckled.

Then he pointed at the screen, "It started. Look at how sloppy that pass was!"

She blinked. Hadn't he groaned about the match when coming in? Changed his mind, hadn't he? Might as well watch it, there was nothing else for her to do. Other than eat once the food came. Was it too late now to bang her head on the table?

The match was a stalemate so far. At one point one of the commentators mentioned that this was still the group elimination stage. So it was still early in the competition. A few more months of this madness. Great.

It could be a source of entertainment or- she had to swallow while glancing to Boba whose eyes were glued to the ongoing match- a reprieve from whatever training he had devised for her. Getting off this rock was impossible without knowing how to steer a ship. Though, surely at some point she would need to know how to. When was the other question.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the arrival of their food towards the near end of half-time. A Mirialan girl put the two plates in front of them and she was gone as quickly as she had appeared, leaving a cloud of stress hanging over them. They really should leave a tip for the waitresses once they left.

A snore from across them nearly made her jump in surprise. Annoyed, she narrowed her eyes at the blissfully unaware Rodian. Could he not take his nap somewhere else?

"Ignore him," Boba commented as he started shoveling his food onto a fork.

"How?" she snarked back pointing with her fork at the offending person, "He is practically snoring on my food!"

Boba rose his eyebrow in amusement, his eyes twinkling in the light of the cantina as he retorted, "Didn't know that snoring was now a crime."

"Not when I am trying to eat something! If I wanted to get drunk I would have bought alcohol!" she said.

How her face remained serious without immediately cracking into laughter was beyond her, but Boba's face was priceless. He stopped moving his fork to his mouth mid-air, staring at her stunned for a moment.

"Did you just make a joke?" he asked.

She blinked biting her tongue to not start laughing on the spot. Yes? That had been obvious? By now the corners of her mouth were twitching, ruining her serious façade. Slapping a hand to her mouth she tried to save it, but he had already caught on. His disbelieving stare morphed into a grin when he finally caught on.

"Heh, didn't you know you were funny," he teased resuming eating again.

Her mouth dropped behind her hand in shock. Did he just…?

"Heeeey!" she exclaimed now glaring up at him only to receive a humorous wink back.

"You had it coming," he snarked flashing her a toothy smirk.

Words were beyond her capabilities right now. How did one speak again? It had to do something with her mouth. Now… how did one form sounds? She looked back to her plate, who still had over half of its content. Rather delicious content too. It would be too wasteful to throw it in his face. Her stomach would not forgive her ever if she did. Her fork rammed too forcefully into the plate, making her wince. That had not been intended and the sudden flash of uneasiness beside her did not help either. She was doing everything wrong right now. A sudden urge to crawl underneath their table came over her as her cheeks caught on fire. The uneasiness dissipated now, slowly replaced with apprehension and then… she had to slap a hand on her cheek facing Boba so he did not absolutely see how red it probably was, there was understanding. His laughter could be heard before it even left his mouth. One of his hands clasped her shoulder holding on as his whole body shook in laughter.

"This isn't funny!" she hissed through her teeth setting her fork down.

"Yes it bloody is!" Boba retorted, wheezing from restraining his outburst which was suddenly drowned in a cacophony of cheers.

People had jumped up on their seats, arms in the air and some even chanting the Balmorran anthem again. Her embarrassment now forgotten, she tried to peek over their heads to see what was going on. This could only mean there had been a score right? Only Boba beat her to it. Damn taller people…

"Balmorra scored," he confirmed the obvious.

She rolled her eyes at him to which he shrugged in response.

"Eat," he then grumbled, "the sooner we are out of this place the better."

Had she stepped on his toes? Frowning, she stared at his temples, the only thing in plain view, and tried to sense what was going on. But with the still cheering crowd and their excitement, whatever he was feeling or thinking got flat out drowned in it. Her stomach was growling again, reminding her that she had no eaten yet all day. Only when she chewed it tasted bland, almost like the ash back… She looked back towards the screen to see a Balmorran pass to another teammate before being tackled to the ground. It looked painful. So far there had been only 3 fouls as shown on the number at the bottom left of the screen. A clean match so far. How unusual.

Her plate was almost empty, her chewing mostly automatic at this point. The bad taste in her mouth didn't go away, no matter how much food she pushed in. It was ashy and metallic, as if she was chewing on bloody ash. Even the hair on her neck started to stand up, goosebumps forming along her arms in a cantina that was warm, bordering hot with all the bodies crammed inside it. She pressed a fist to her chest to elevate some of the chest pain when she swallowed painfully.

Once she was finally done, she only stared at the empty plate, her fork hovering above it. The goosebumps wandered up her arms, her neck and down her back. Something was up. But what? Nothing seemed like it was coming from around her… No. That feeling came from her . As if her stomach had flipped.

Her fork nearly slipped from her limp fingers when Boba clamped down on her left hand.

"Phasing out?" he had lowered his head towards her ear snapping her out of her phase out.

She shook her head slightly, her goosebumps receding and even the taste in her mouth disappeared. There was concern displayed openly on his face, his hand on her left wrist loosening its grip.

"I guess…" she muttered back, the weird feeling now completely gone.

Had she just imagined it? It seemed so out of place. His eyes dipped to her nose and then back to her eyes, before he ducked his head further towards her. Their foreheads were a hair's width away from the other, she wanted to close that distance. Really the urge was there, burning behind her eyelids. But it would be too weird if she did, so she stayed put.

"Sleep?" he suggested softly, nudging her with his legs.

She hummed in response as she slid out of the booth with him following right behind her. The match on the screen had entered in the last quarter, most people now visibly on the edge of their. Some even biting nails or claws. Their ambient chatter had died down not completely gone. Altharya had to squeeze her way out of a gaggle of four Twi'leks who had matching purple shirts and flags. Alderaan supporters.

They nearly had reached the door, Boba was already reaching to open it when the screen flickered off the match to an impeccably dressed man. The taste of ash was back in her mouth and her hand flew up to cup her mouth as her throat convulsed. Her back impacted with Boba's chestplate and his hand shot to steady her on her shoulder. Both of them stared at the man who had dark circles underneath his eyes. A news reporter. It had been years since she last saw one of them, back on Coruscant.

Confusion washed over her from everyone in the room at first. Why was there an interruption? Startled she looked to Boba whose eyes were transfixed on the news man who cleared his throat awkwardly. That man didn't want to do this. It was clear as day. She inched closer to Boba. Whatever this was, they might have to bolt. Hadn't they all said that war was brewing? Was this going to be…

"Apologies for the interruption of the live showing of the match, it will recommence once the announcement from Mr. Eric Arion has concluded."

Someone booed loudly before being shushed by the others around them. Her stomach sank. If the Arions are putting out a public announcement, it must be something bad. Right? She looked to Boba who turned his head to her for a short moment, looking unsure himself. The man faded away to a video where Eric was sitting on a chair with microphones surrounding him. Morion and Lorena stood behind him, faces impassive. Only their eyes looked reddish,as if they had been crying.

She knew what was going to come.

Boba's hand settled firmly on her shoulder, steadying her shifting her weight from behind her heels to her feet again. A questioning look was all she got before his question was answered from the Arions.

"I apologise for the abrupt announcement," Eric Arion started, voice heavy and measured.

Flashes of cameras lit up their faces and Lorena winced at the bright light. No one noticed, Altharya glanced around quickly, all eyes were fixed on the head of their planet. Slowly she shifted more towards Boba, twisting her hands, her nerves wracked.

"Given the circumstances in Ebonya a couple of days ago and the new developments, this has become a matter of utmost urgency," Eric Arion paused, letting his eyes slide deliberately over the journalists that must be gathered out of their view.

It was as if a tense chord had strung around them, ringing from the worry and anticipation permeating in the room now.

Get out .

Her breathing stuttered and she pressed herself flatly against Boba's side causing him to grunt in surprise. Words were stuck in her throat, otherwise she would have told him what was going on. But then she locked eyes with him again. He knew, his eyes screamed it for all to hear. With a pained expression he squeezed her shoulder he was clutching. Both of them could not move transfixed onto the Eric Arion's face which seemed to have aged in the last few seconds. All she could see was a tired old man. A man that was grieving.

That poor kid …

"My fellow citizens, I come to you in our hour of grief," Eric paused again taking a deep breath while the air seemed to be sucked out simultaneously of their cantina room, "I hereby announce that Senya Arion has deceased two hours previously. The investigation into her passing is still ongoing."

As soon as he said that murmuring started, growing steadily louder. Worry, anger and fear were flying around her head, driving painfully into the back of her skull. Her spine felt cold, as if fingers creeping up on it, steadily and finger by finger.

Tap .

Her hand found Boba's belt, gripping the leather tightly, making her knuckles creak.

Tap .

Silence hung over the cantina, no one daring to utter a word. Was she even breathing at this point? Her lungs felt like it had become incapable of taking in air.

Tap .

She felt Boba retreated, her feet scrambling to keep up with him. Before Eric Arion could speak more they had stumbled into the cool night, leaving her panting. Stemming her hands onto her hips, she tried to regain some semblance of balance. Boba had let go of her as soon as they were out, though he still hovered above her. Cool air finally entered her chest and dispelled some of the ache in her skull. The fingers on her spine disappeared.

Right. They had known Senya would be dead sooner than later.

"Let's go back to the house," he suggested after a moment.

She nodded and straightened out to follow him. Quickly she looked back at the cantina entrance, muffled noise coming out from there. The others must have snapped out of their stupor. Boba shuffled slightly with his feet, impatient. Huffing she turned to him, ready to give him her best death glare. Only he looked sullen, exhausted. Sighing she stepped closer to him, slipping her left arm around him. His hand hovered hesitantly over right shoulder before pressing her shortly to him, as if it was a hug.

Their walk back was silent, the both of them looking anywhere but at each other. Whatever consequences that were going to come out of Senya's death, she knew they were grinding through Boba's head. He was not being exactly quiet, a muted storm behind his mental shields. What was she to think? They both knew who and what had happened. Why the Arions kept a tight lid on those details was beyond her. Maybe they had a good reason. Or they were withholding for now and would drop the truth later.

The fallout was going to be deadly and it was inevitable.

Even with the mild breeze and close to Boba, she was shivering violently.

* * *

 **AN: Hope you liked it, please tell me what you thought. The reviews on the last chapter did bring some additional motivation to write on this chapter and the next one which should drop in the next few days.**

 **Love . Fiction . 2018:** I am glad you are liking it so far :)

 **i** **cevsfire721:** I hope I could deliver on what you had been hoping for!

 **RavenHairedQueen:** glad you loved it and you asked for the next update, here it is!


	15. Chapter 15

**AN: Finally realised I said I would update soon enough. Guess I got side-tracked again. Chapter 16 is not being done yet either. The only time I can really write is doing the evening when I am done with my work.**

 **Beta: SapphiraBlue (AO3)**

 **Reviews are always welcome.**

 **Love . Fiction . 2018: Thank you.**

* * *

They finally made it to the house as complete darkness set in, the yellowish light from the living room a beacon to follow. Was this what moths felt when they flew straight into a lamp? Once inside and with the door locked Boba brushed past her., not even sparing her a glance as left her in the hallway. Rubbing her arms, she followed him to the living room where the cleaning droid had curled up on itself again, deactivated. Frowning, she looked around. Had it even cleaned?

No dust layer on the table. The couch cushions looked like they had been cleaned, same with the blanket- it was even neatly folded. Its program probably told it to shut down once done; that, or the energy cells ran out.

Boba's footsteps diverted her attention back to him as he stepped out of the kitchen area.

"Did you look for something?" she asked, purely out of instinct.

"A holo-comm," he held one up, the tiny disk glinting in the light.

"For me?" she asked back.

Wouldn't it be foolish to give her a holo-comm? This was slightly confusing.

"Yep," he held it out to her before noticing her confusion, his posture faltering slightly. "There is only one holo-frequency on it and can only reach me if I am on planet. Mine alone, and nothing else can be added or done with it."

His tone made it clear he was done talking about it. He forcefully shoved it in her direction. What had gotten into him? Even more confused, she took it and turned it in her fingers. These things were supposed to go into bracers, right? An exasperated groan made her jerk her head up. Boba was suddenly standing right in front of her, impatient and grumpy while holding his hand out.

"You put them on," he said and grabbed her right wrist, " like this."

Her braces were old ones and she wasn't sure if the holo-comm even fit in there. But to her amazement, he only pressed it into the small pouch made for it. It actually fit. As soon as the device was tight enough, he dropped her wrist as if he had burned himself. She flexed her right hand, to see if it felt any different now. Not really a difference. Weird.

"Why?" she asked.

"Given what we just heard," Boba didn't even bother to address the bantha in the room.

She crossed her arms. Fine. Two could play this game.

"It might be the case I will need to leave for a few days," he explained.

"Why?" she demanded to know.

His face scrunched up in annoyance, "Because, believe it or not, war is coming, and we both need to know when to get out before they decide to draft us into it."

That was unexpected. Them, being drafted for a war?

"I don't think…" she started, but Boba wouldn't let her continue.

"The Arions are the same as the Brents," he held her eyes, almost like he was pleading with her. "Don't think for a second they will not use you for their gain."

There was no point in arguing with him. Lorena had seemed different; there had been an undercurrent of sincerity when they had interacted.

"But Lorena…" she started to argue back only this time Boba grabbed her by both her shoulders, his gauntlets digging into her skin.

"Lorena is not running this system. Eric Arion is, and you and I better be on our toes with him," Boba hissed and she waited for him to start shaking her.

"So…" she sounded lost and trailed off as soon as no words came to her.

Boba still looked at her intensely, however his grip finally loosened up.

"I understand," she sighed and finally he let her go.

He stepped back, the previous closeness suddenly feeling almost an eternity ago.

Rubbing his face he muttered, "We both need sleep."

"No kidding," she mumbled back, earning her a sharp glance.

At least he didn't retort with anything sarcastic or they'd both be standing here until the morning hours. What time was it even? Shaking her head, she tried to see if the holo-vision had a small display. There was none. Boba cleared his throat behind her which drew her attention away from her search.

What did he want now?

He pointed up the stairs. Sending her to bed? Really? Like a child? She wanted to shake her head in protest. Even if she was tired, he did not get to punt her around like he wanted. Just then her body betrayed her. A yawn slipped past her conscious control and Boba's knowing smirk wiped out any resistance she might have mustered. Fine. His win this time. Huffing, she walked past him and up the stairs. Just as she reached the top the rumbling of closing shutters could be heard and then Boba's footsteps coming up behind her.

"What about our stuff?" she asked once he had caught up with her.

"We are getting it now," he held up a hand as if to appease her and walked past her towards the roof latch.

"Why didn't we get it down before leaving for food?" she wondered.

He rolled his eyes as he was fiddling with the latch locks, "And have the droid mess with it? No."

"How would a droid mess up our stuff if it isn't unpacked yet?" she wondered

"That droid has a programmed routine, one that we haven't reprogrammed yet. And I am not keen on searching for my shit and waste time," he said, pressing his hands flat on the latch and lifting it up.

Then he was up on the roof and she stepped towards the ladder. It was like a black hole in the middle of the ceiling. Crossing her arms, she waited for Boba to come back with two bags. She had been surprised when he had pulled out a rather large Thranta-leather bag from somewhere under his bunk. Thranta-leather! Struhn had something similar once, a backpack made of that same leather. He'd said that it was mostly used for military grade gear because of its toughness. When she had asked where he had gotten it from, Struhn had shushed her with an ice pop. Her thirteen year old self had been sufficiently distracted by that and Soren had started babbling about his parents' recent run in with pirates in some system.

Had Boba been in the military at one point? Most of what had been told to her before the Purge was gone from her memory. Though, he would have been thirteen when it happened, still too young to join. His father maybe had been and then Boba got it after his death? She winced. Maybe she should not ask that, given how aggressive he had been about it when she broached it when they- Oh Force, her cheeks were on fire- had been crammed in that closet.

A muffled clang signaled Boba coming back and she blew out the breath she had been holding. For once could she control herself? No? Yes?

No, apparently, her face still warm when Boba climbed down and closed the latch behind him, the two bags dangling from his back. Then he hopped down, taking her bag off to hand it to her. She hesitated before taking it. After all, Lorena gave it to her, along with all the clothes inside.

"Those two rooms are Monts' and Kertan's," Boba said pointing towards the two closest doors to them.

"So… we are sleeping in the same room?" she asked.

Somehow she had hoped to have at least a room to herself, since neither Monts nor Kertan were here to begin with.

"No other choice. I don't have the keys to them," he shrugged and moved towards their room's door.

"This is such a weird arrangement," slipped out of her before she could rein it in.

Boba snorted as he opened the door.

"You were not planned," he joked and flipped on the light.

It was not a small room, but not large either. There were two beds on opposite sides of the room with a few cupboards and a desk underneath a window that was opposite the door. Like the rest of the house, there were few personal items, excepting a small Y-wing model on the desk.

"Probably should have planned better," she shot back.

Boba laughed briefly at her quip as he threw his bag on the bed to the right.

"Well, we did plan for short-stay guests," he answered.

Whatever humour there had been was now sucked out of the air and she felt her face fall. Of course he had to remind her that she was only here because Vader wanted an apprentice and they needed to lay low for Force only knew how long.

Boba turned around when she didn't respond and sighed when he saw her face.

"It will be a long while before Vader wants me to bring you to him," he said, trying to sound reassuring.

He failed miserably, and she lowered her eyes to the floor. Had she seriously expected that the whole mess with the Arions would have changed anything? Her chest tightened. Had any of the girl's family been there when the doctors terminated life support?

The bag she had been given fit nicely underneath the the bed. At least Lorena had kept practicality in mind when she had scrounged for clothes.

She and Boba got changed in stony silence. There was this want to broach the subject just dancing around the edges of every move they did. Stars, they both really could be stubborn.

The Force was rather clear for once tonight. Even if Boba's thoughts were muted and fizzling in and out around her ears, she could feel the electrical charges and the calm around the house. It was safe where they were. Just her gut twisted and there was a pull on her lungs as soon as she tried to press further.

Why was she trying? Her head snapped up, her hands stilling over the bed sheets. Instincts? Since when had she had instincts?

"Is something wrong?" Boba asked as she whirled around.

He was already sitting on his bed, elbows on his knees and hands folded underneath his chin. Would he even understand what she was feeling? How did one explain the Force to the Force-blind and what it made those who were sensitive to it do?

"No… nothing," she muttered turning around again.

"Doesn't sound like nothing," he argued, the bed creaking as if he was laying down.

"Why do you care?" slipped from her, turning her head slightly over the shoulder.

"I am supposed to look after you," he countered almost immediately.

"Isn't looking after me just limited to physical well-being?" she asked and for a heartbeat nothing moved.

"It is what I deem it to be," he answered.

It sounded as if he had chewed over each word before slowly answering her. How was she supposed to argue against that? Well, if he really wanted to look after her, he might as well delve right into the enigma that was the Force. See if he knew more than she did. It would be a miracle at this point. Not that it would be unwelcome if he did have some advice.

"It is the…," she turned around to wave with her hands around, "the Force."

He was laying on the bed facing her. At her rather short explanation, he raised a skeptical eyebrow.

"The Force?" he asked, sounding unsure whether to laugh or to take her seriously.

"How else am I supposed to explain?" she fired back.

"So that I can understand?" he deadpanned.

She groaned. Back to her original problem: How did one describe the Force?!

"It is like a gut feeling," she said.

"I suspect a rather strong case of gut feeling?" he asked and she swore there was a sarcastic undertone.

"Well, yeah," she admitted.

"And what is that gut feeling telling you?" he asked.

The sarcasm was gone, replaced with seriousness.

"As if something was out there," she said.

Boba frowned now and then asked, "Anything more specific?"

"No," she replied shaking her head.

Boba sighed, "Not much to go on."

"Well, the Force does not just say 'Hey, there's this happening'," she shot back.

"Then why are you so tense?" he asked.

"Would you be calm if you knew there was something out there?" she asked.

"No, but then again, think of where you are," he said.

Right, they were in a town where people weren't exactly law-abiding. Had Teth felt the same when she had been there the first couple of months? It had been ten years! How was she supposed to remember? Struhn had given her sleep medication for months too.

"You really aren't worried?" she asked again.

"No," he answered, "this is, strangely enough, a safe spot. Everyone who lives here will kill for that."

"Kill?" she asked while sitting down on the bed.

"A safe place with a powerful family protecting us. The only condition we have is to never disturb the peace here," he said, sounding grave.

"What?" she asked.

A bounty hunter nest with rules? What a paradox.

"We have some immunity here, as long as we follow that rule."

"What if someone does break the rules?"

"They would have the Arions and a whole town of bounty hunters going after them, as well as one of the most well-known Rishii hunters out there, with nowhere safe to go," he stated nonchalantly.

She nodded. It was a reason, she supposed. A safe space where bounty hunters did not have to fear being apprehended as long as they did the odd job for the Arions or being offed by other bounty hunters. It sounded almost too ideal, but she could see why they would defend the peace of what she could only describe as a home for some of them.

"Sleep. Tomorrow we're starting," Boba disrupted her thoughts.

"Starting what?" she asked curious of what he had in mind.

"I did say I would train you," Boba reminded her, before turning his back on her.

Her mouth fell open. He had been serious?

"Uhm…" she closed her mouth.

"You really want to do that?" she blurted out.

"Have I made you think I would go back on my word?" he asked grumpily.

"Well…," she started.

"Don't want to know. Sleep. Don't complain if you can't keep up tomorrow if you don't," came another grumpy remark just as the lights shut off, dousing them in relative darkness.

She blew out the breath she would have used to answer. So not the fact that they had gone from prisoner and kidnapper to something else pretty fast? He probably knew that as well and… she had to smile. He just didn't want it to be said out loud. Yet. They'd get there at some point.

The sheets were cool and smooth when she laid down on her back. Sleep, right. Maybe there was some hope for her after all. Lifting her hand to her face she felt the corners of her mouth tilting upwards. She let that hand fall down to her stomach where she bunched up the fabric of her shirt.

Whatever she had felt out there, it was real. The Force was trying to tell her something. Just as she told Boba, the Force was never direct in its messages. Master Renstan had said so before he'd left. Back then she hadn't understood why he'd spoken so quickly and urgently, making her repeat some things back to him until he was satisfied. He had known already he wouldn't return for a long while.

She released a breath. Why was she just realizing this now? There was no way she would ever see Master Renstan again, or Dr. Struhn. Rubbing her cheek, she briefly looked over to Boba's bed. His back was still turned to her and most of him was covered by a blanket. She could feel his even breaths ghosting around the room. He had already fallen asleep. Good. Finally he would get some sufficient time to sleep after the last couple of days of sheer and utter chaos. She loosened her grip on her shirt.

Senya died. Not surprising, but… now it was final. All the deaths in the clinic on Teth hadn't felt so ominous. Maybe that was what she was sensing. Her dread of something real. War was brewing, they'd said, that it was inevitable. One that would blow up in their faces one way or another, she just knew it. Hopefully Lorena lost Boba's contact frequency or otherwise- her gut lurched at the thought- she might ask them to participate. Well, not them both, but Boba and by extension her, most likely.

When she finally fell asleep she didn't quite know, her sleep dreamless again. It was a mercy, given what all had happened.

A rough shaking of her shoulders nearly threw her out of the bed and onto the floor.

"I told you to sleep," Boba remarked when she blinked questioningly at him.

Blearily, she propped herself up on an elbow and looked around the room. Bright sunlight filtered through the window, illuminating the beige floorboards and the blue-grey shirt Boba wore. For once he wasn't in armour. Somehow even that felt strange.

"I did?" she protested weakly before the blankets were torn off of her.

Cool morning air hit her bare feet and she curled them in towards her body.

"I know you stayed up longer than I did," he remarked drily with a raised eyebrow.

Curling her toes inwards she swung herself upright, rubbing her eyes in the process, and grumbled, "I'm up. Happy now?"

"Yep," he replied, smirking down at her, "We've got some work to do today."

She groaned, "What work?"

"There is no time to waste to train you," he explained, suppressed laughter dancing behind his tone.

"There were precious sleep hours to waste," she argued and now he was not holding back with his laughter.

"If you'd listened to me and just slept, you would be more awake," he teased and crossed his arms in front of her.

"I didn't fall asleep as fast as you did," she argued now craning her neck to look back at him.

He looked better, the dark circles underneath his eyes gone now. His eyes were more alive. Somehow she was glad about it.

"Trouble falling asleep? You didn't have any problems with the Arions," he stated.

"I just had this gut feeling," she explained.

"Like you mentioned?" he asked.

"Yeah," she said.

He looked pensive for a moment, looking at her intently.

"I suppose talking about it would help?" he tentatively offered, taking a step back so she could stand up.

She pushed herself off the bed and onto her feet before replying. These things were better discussed from equal standing. Up close she smelled soap on his skin. How long had he been up already? Speaking of which, she needed a shower, desperately

"I think we both know that it will be a lengthy talk," she said.

He quirked an eyebrow in response.

"Then I suppose we get some caf, have food and during that we talk," he conceded and motioned for the door leading to the hallway.

"Right," she said and followed him down.

It took her a few minutes before she had a cup of caf ready. Unfortunately for the both of them, there were only nutrient bars for food.

"We need better food," she commented when they sat down around the table.

He shot her a look that told her he knew it. Carefully she took a sip of the caf and ouch- it was still burning hot. Hastily, she set down the cup and winced at the burnt tip of her tongue. Maybe it was best to use the cup as a hand warmer for now.

"So…," she started but stopped.

How was she to even word this?

"Is it about Senya's death?" Boba cut to the chase, taking a sip from his cup.

How did he not burn his tongue?

"Yes... they said that war was inevitable now," she said.

"It has been inevitable for years," Boba said drily, "but war will be more likely to happen in the next few years now."

"I am sensing things here that…," she gesticulated, "I don't know. It is as if there's something waiting to happen."

"Something?" Boba sounded skeptical.

"Like something bad pending," she said.

He sighed, "That can mean a number of things. Altharya, the jobs we do for the Arions are not exactly what you would call good."

"Still," she protested, "there has to be a connection to what happened with Senya."

"Are you absolutely sure?" he asked.

Was she?

"As sure as I can be?" she shrugged and took a careful sip of caf.

It was better than the swill that they had on Teth.

"What does that mean?" Boba asked.

"Just that it feels like it's connected," she winced at the explanation.

"Feels?" Boba deadpanned, eyebrows raised in uncertainty.

He doubted her on that. She couldn't really blame him, because the Force was weird by definition.

"Gut feeling," she supplied.

"Gut feelings can be valid," Boba said slowly, as if he was weighing his words carefully.

"But you still don't trust it?" she asked.

"No," he shook his head decidedly.

"Why?" she probed.

"Because what do I have to go on? Just your gut feeling?"

"Didn't you just say gut feelings are valid?"

"Can be valid, not always," he countered, "You yourself sound uncertain about it, and it could mean a number of things!"

"Because I can't pin it down?" she asked disbelievingly.

"Yes," Boba said, "As I said, this side of town harbours nobody innocent. If it's true about it being connected with Senya, then it's probably the Arions giving out a few jobs in relation to it."

Well… he could be right. Maybe. She didn't really know.

"So you are saying that it is related to where we are," she said.

"Definitely," Boba sighed, "We will most likely get contracted too, at some point."

"How likely is that?" she asked.

"Very likely," he confirmed.

She stayed silent. After all, his point was as valid as hers in this matter. It could be something waiting to happen to them or something waiting to happen to someone else. Who knew? Not her for sure. Then again, why would she sense that feeling of impending doom?

"Can't we keep an eye out for anything suspicious though?" she asked.

Boba blew out a breath and looked towards the ceiling for a moment.

"I suppose we could," he conceded, still keeping his eyes to the ceiling.

"You'd rather not," she observed.

"Yep," he confirmed and finally looked back at her, "However, I can't disregard the possibility of the Brents planning something here either, especially after they killed Senya."

"So you trust my gut feeling?" she asked, now confused.

Could he please make up his mind?

"No, I don't," he sounded annoyed, "But it is a possibility alongside the others. Not really narrowing it down, is it?"

"No," she agreed.

"Good," Boba said before finishing his cup, "Just eat and then I want you outside."

She rolled her eyes at him which earned her an annoyed side glance. Looking back to her caf, she bit the tip of her poor tongue. It should have cooled off enough to drink by now. Carefully she took another sip and thankfully didn't burn her tongue again. Training was going to be torture.

It was relatively warm outside when she was finally ready. Boba was waiting for her impatiently with crossed arms. Well, he could stuff it. She had to wait for him to be ready before using the fresher!

"I suppose you had some sort of combat training in the temple?" Boba asked, disgruntled, as soon as she stopped in front of him.

All Younglings had to go through combat training, but that been ten years ago, nearly eleven. After that she had mostly been in a clinic, with the occasional sessions with a rifle when Soren's parents had taken pity on her.

"Yes, but I doubt I remember most of it," she answered, raising an eyebrow in question.

"So it would be better if we start from zero?" Boba asked.

"Eh, I suppose?" she shrugged in response.

"Osik…," Boba muttered pinching the bridge of his nose, "I guess we have a lot of work before us."

She crossed her arms. What did he expect, really? That she'd remember every single nuance of 'saber combat after ten years of an enforced break?

"Right," Boba continued, "Do you remember the stance?"

"Stance?" she asked.

Which one did he mean?!

"Hand-to-hand stance," he snapped back.

Ohh, he could have said so from the beginning! Though, it might be best to keep her sarcasm to herself for now, with how annoyed he looked already. Hesitantly she slipped her feet into the position she remembered. Couldn't be too much different from the stance she had to use while using a rifle, right?

She didn't see the hand coming from her left. Suddenly she was just on her right foot and then her head whistled through the air. Her right shoulder impacted hard on solid ground, rattling her teeth, and her nose burned. What. Just. Happened?

"Feet too far apart," Boba said as he knelt down to her eye level.

"Couldn't you have just told me and not thrown me off balance?" she grumbled.

She pushed herself off the ground and onto her knees.

"It's best to learn from mistakes," he argued while straightening up.

"Directions would be appreciated," she fired back.

"You had the right idea, but your feet were not far apart enough to be stable sideways," he pointed out, "Try again."

After seven more tries and being shoved to the ground each time, she finally got the stance he wanted. Now she only stumbled slightly when he pushed.

"I suppose it's sufficient," Boba said after his third attempt failed to make her fall.

"Now what?" she asked.

"Now? Now you run," he commented.

"Run?" she asked surprised.

What did he mean, run? Run around the house?

"Exactly what I mean. A good stance means nothing if your feet can't keep up with your movements," he explained.

"And where exactly am I supposed to run?" she questioned.

"For now, around the house," he said.

"And that's supposed to help me?" she asked.

"Do you want to survive Vader or not?" he hissed back.

She shut her mouth immediately at that. What was up with him today? So touchy…. Fine, she wouldn't question him for a while. Maybe that would cool him off.

They trained for the remainder of the day, if one could call it training. It felt like she was back to being a Youngling again. The basics were chewed through and stars, she needed that! Who would have thought that ten years would erode even the basics? She certainly hadn't thought so, and her body was punishing her for it now. The only thing she wished Boba would do was actually tell her how to do it correctly before throwing her around. She certainly caught more punches than ducking or evading them, even after more than a fair amount of tries. Her reaction time was always a tad too late.

* * *

Only when the sun had set did they stop. She stumbled back into the house while Boba looked like he hadn't even exerted himself at all. Sitting down on the couch made her wince,her thighs sore.

"We need to go out tomorrow for food," Boba commented from the kitchen.

"Why didn't we go today?" she called back.

Seriously, grocery shopping would have been preferable to the punishment she'd received today. Not sure how Boba would describe it, but that had been punishment. Nothing could convince her otherwise!

"Because," Boba appeared in the living room with four nutrient bars in his hands, "the shopkeep has his day off today."

"Oh," she frowned.

"They don't like us crossing the boundaries on the weekend," he supplied while sitting down next to her.

"The Rishii?" she asked.

"Who else?"

Fair point. Who else other than the locals?

"Here," he offered her two of the bars, which she took.

Actual food would be good. Nutrient bars tasted like paper at best, wet paper at worst. Just who would cook food, though? Not her, for certain. There was no way she could hold a pan if her arms kept becoming jelly after each session!

"And who will cook if we are both going to be busy beating the living daylights out of each other?" she asked, throwing him a wink.

He laughed into the nutrient bar at the question.

"Fair point," he finished chewing, "then again, at the moment it only applies to you."

"Good, you cook then!" she teased, tucking her legs under.

That couch was comfortable and she just wanted to melt into it right now. Though… a shower was mandatory before bed. There was no way she'd rub her sweat into the bedsheets. Ugh, the smell would a nightmare to get out.

"I will," Boba now looked positively mischievous. "but no complaining about it!"

"I promise," she put her hand on her chest while rolling her eyes.

"I saw that!" he protested.

"I still promised!"

"That eye roll invalidated it!" he pointed at her face now.

It was so ridiculous she started laugh. Ouch! Her ribs were not thanking her. She had to clutch at her waist. It would be yellow by now and blue by tomorrow. The shower later would probably show the extent of the damage.

"Hurts?" Boba asked, leaning over on the couch.

She nodded, wincing as another stab went through her sides. Now he was hovering above her, his fingers reaching out hesitantly. Her eyes were glued to his hands. What did he want?

"Can I see?" he asked.

"Dunno what there is to see other than forming bruises," she wheezed out.

"I know a thing or two about bruises," he countered carefully.

"What could you do?" she asked now curious.

His fingers twitched and she swallowed. So close! Was he seriously asking her to push up her shirt to see? The hand that was clutching her side curled into the fabric. Her throat was dry suddenly and she had to swallow heavily. So did Boba. A strange warmth flimmered between them now, and she couldn't quite figure out why her stomach felt like fluttering, or why his face seemed to have grown darker.

"Well…" he hesitated before his voice broke, fingers curling away now, "Nevermind."

She frowned, sitting up as he sat back and poked, "What?"

"I said nevermind," he grumbled and grabbed a remote for the holo-vision.

What had gotten into him? At first he wanted to do something for the bruises and now he had closed off again. The holo-vision sputtered to life.

"The win of the Snapping Thrantas yesterday…" a man in a studio fizzled into view.

Boba's eyes were glued to the hologram and she had to roll her eyes. Of course, don't even talk about what crossed him now. Fine. She needed a shower anyways. Huffing, she pushed herself off the couch and shuffled over to the fresher.

"Where are you going?" he asked before she could close the door behind her.

"I need a shower," she answered sighing audibly.

"Ah," he already sounded disinterested.

She clenched her hand on the door handle. It was not her responsibility to look after him. No. Once had been enough! But somehow her chest felt heavy just closing the door . Though… not everything could be chewed through either. Not her responsibility. Nope. All she had to concentrate on was why her stomach was doing weird shit in his proximity.

Cold water was a pure relief on her aching muscles and she stood in the water stream for a solid felt eternity. Right- bruises. She looked down to where she had hit the ground most often. Shoulders, side and knees. All three regions were definitely blue already. Somehow she doubted they had any ice packs around to slap on all or them.

The match recap was still running when she walked out of the fresher, hair hanging down to her waist, still damp. Boba only glanced at her briefly before immediately looking back at the screen. A question hung around him only to dispersed as soon as she stepped around the side to sit down next to him.

"After the recap, there's another match," Boba informed her as soon as she had sat down with her feet curled up, pointing towards Boba.

"Which one?" she asked while leaning with an elbow on the couch rest.

"Ord Mantell against Nar Shaddaa," he answered not even bothering to look at her.

The match began five minutes later and… stars, the anthem for Nar Shaddaa was tear-jerkingly boring. Her eyelids were fluttering by the third verse of glorifying whatever Hutt was now the big boss of the moon.

By the time the match kicked off she was fast asleep.

* * *

A slight jostle brought her to a state of half-sleep, half-awake. Her head felt so light, as if stuffed with cotton. Yeah, she was asleep- mostly. She could not really prevent an eyelid cracking open.

It was dark around her. How late was it?

Another jostle. She turned her head and her cheek hit soft fabric with something hard beneath it. A face materialized above her.

Boba?

She felt herself frowning and tried to lift a hand. Force… her hand was heavy with how it was hanging below her. Her feet were hanging in the air too. It felt like there was an arm underneath her neck….

Yeah, Boba was carrying her up the stairs by how he was moving. That meant… her cheeks flamed now, her face was practically squished against his chest. This was embarrassing. At least he couldn't see it with how dark it was.

A steady thumping could be heard suddenly… not really, it had been there, but… it hadn't registered in her mind.

So… soothing. She could listen to it for the rest of time.


	16. Chapter 16

**AN:I know it took a while. Had a dissertation to finish and all. Currently writing on the next chapter. Please review :D**

* * *

Her legs absolutely hurt as if a nerf heard had trampled over them when Boba woke her. Did she really have to get up? Groaning she tried to push her body off the mattress. If only her aching shoulders and thighs would co-operate. Disoriented she blinked into the early morning light until Boba shifted into her field of view.

"Wake up," Boba said still shaking her shoulder, "we need to get there early; everyone else will take most of the stuff away if we do not hurry."

"Hurts…" she groaned managing to finally push herself up.

Arms strained as her muscles shook under the exertion. Just as the blanket rustled when Boba threw it back. Cool air met her hurting skin. Did not help the ache! Hissing she curled into a ball on instinct. Not even her brawls with Soren had earned her that many bruises and muscles screaming in pain.

"You really look like I beat you unconscious," Boba commented suppressing a snort.

"Feels that way," she grumbled finally up and sitting.

"Right, we can go easy today. But we need food first."

Oh. Food? Actual food?!

She stumbled out of the room after Boba with her clothes for the day in her arms. Her knees shook so badly when she reached the bottom of the stairs. Felt like her bones were rattling and no skin and tendons were between them. Skin was littered with patches of blue and the occasional green ones. At least her clothes would cover them all. Yawning she walked out of the fresher with Boba waiting outside for her with a crate in his arms.

"A crate?" she asked, eyes wide in surprise.

"How else are we going to carry the groceries?" Boba deadpanned.

"Good point," she sighed rubbing her eyes.

"Still not sleeping alright?" he suddenly asked sounding concerned.

"Don't think that is the issue," she replied shaking her head.

"Any idea?" he pressed.

She shrugged walking past him to the door, "If I knew what was going on, I would be able to work around it."

"Do I need to get you sleep medication?" he asked following her to the door.

"Those can be harmful over a prolonged period," she pointed out as she opened the door for them.

He walked out before answering, "Still I cannot have that… weird gut feeling interfering too much."

"That gut feeling has a name," she retorted as she closed the door.

He threw her an annoyed side glance. No, he would not even utter the word. Fine, she would not press, but they could not keep calling the Force a gut feeling either. Felt wrong in so many ways. All in due time.

Morning dew still clung to the grass and leaves as they made their way to the grocery store. Blinding her occasionally when the sun rays hit at the right angle. Not many people were out and the ones who were blinked slowly and yawning every now and then. Good to know some people felt like her in this.

But Boba had been right. When they arrived at the grocery store, it was already filled with people browsing the shelves and bagging what they wanted.

"Is there limited food or what?" she asked in surprise.

"No, but we cannot trust some people not to bulk buy," he retorted sarcastically with a dark expression.

She snorted. Oh the bulk buyers. The bane of the shops on Teth. Good to see that some things did not change from one end of the galaxy to the next. Comforting in a way. Inside, the shop was similarly stocked too, the durables at the front and the fresh produce more towards the back where the cooling units were.

"What do we need?" she asked looking around.

Oh! They had beans! And rice!

Other products looked completely foreign to her though. What were those yellow ball-like fruits? Or those pink grapes?

"We need nerf meat, vegetables, fruit and potatoes or noodles. Whatever we can get," he listed marching over to the first aisle.

"Salt?" she held up a canister.

"Throw it in."

She tossed the canister into the crate. There was nothing really of interest for her on that shelf, unless they needed more spices. Spices she never heard of to begin with. Hopefully he would never want to see her spit fire….

They could buy so much and still run back the next day to buy the other stuff she knew some people on Teth would have loved to get their claws on.

There were packs of bread dough here! Ones that would just needed to be heated up. Those had been a luxury on Teth!

"Hey, Fett," someone behind them suddenly called out.

She turned around the pack still in her hands to see a tall and lean man approaching Boba. Who looked like he'd rather be anywhere else but here. That man… her stomach lurched the closer he got.

"Emmet," he greeted forcibly, "has the office not opened yet?"

"Not this early," Emmet laughed as he came to a stop, "I heard you were back in town and wondered what brought you back."

"You know why," Boba retorted readjusting the crate in his arms.

"Job?"

"What else?"

"You know the Arions have issued new ones… lucrative ones," Emmet suddenly whispered.

"Not surprising with what happened," Boba commented drily.

"Poor Senya, bless her soul," Emmet sighed as sadness spiked from him.

Why was he talking to them? Well to Boba really, he had not even noticed her it seems? How was it that people barely noticed her? Though, it might be best if this Emmet didn't see her. Just don't move.

"Did you just come here to tell me about the new jobs?" Boba asked sounding irritated now.

"Oh no, I meant to come to pass on a general warning. Brent operatives have been found in the other towns," Emmet said his smile now cold and dangerous.

She frowned. It felt strange. A warning should not feel like a threat in any way. As carefully as she could she slipped behind the shelves to the other aisle. But she could still hear the two talk.

"I can keep an eye out for them," Boba finally said neutrally.

"Also inform your companion about it," Emmet added.

Companion? She had just been there! Was he short sighted?

"My companion?" Boba sounded confused now.

"Tehra mentioned you had a girl with you on Huttball night?" Emmet asked now.

Boba did not speak a word, uncertainty lacing through his irritation now. They both were confused now. Great. She looked at some cereal boxes that were neatly stacked in front of her. Boba had mentioned that families lived here, but she just couldn't picture bounty hunters having kids running around here and eat the galaxy wide cereal brands. At least not quite yet.

"Well yeah, she is here though?" Boba replied finally.

"I didn't see her."

She blew out a breath. Did not see her? What was she? Invisible?!

"She was standing right next to me when you came up."

"Oh," Emmet sounded awkward now, "Well, I have to return now anyways."

"Do you want to talk to her?" Boba asked curiously.

Please no.

"Not necessary, just passing the warning along," Emmet replied cheerily.

"You are just looking for an excuse to get the ice pops," Boba deadpanned.

"They say it is going to be hot today, but the run has proven to be in my line of work regardless."

She could practically feel Boba shaking his head now.

"See you around, Emmet."

"Happy hunting, Fett."

Only when she was sure that the guy had left towards the cashier did she walk around the aisle to Boba again.

"Who was that?" she asked.

"That…," Boba sighed, "is the guy we go to for the Arion jobs."

"You have a guy for that?" she asked in disbelief.

"Yep," Boba countered looking over another set of shelves, "you need a place where records are kept who does what job and a guarantee that you'd get paid."

"Sounds so…," she grappled for words, "not what I would expect from a bounty hunter town."

He shrugged, "If it guarantees the pay, I won't complain."

"Suppose," she sighed.

"So do you want beans or carrots?" he asked suddenly now pointing at the vegetable section.

"Why not both?" she asked.

"Asking for preferences," he replied rolling his eyes.

"The only dislike I have is any sea food," she shuddered at the thought of fish or crab.

"How?" he sounded surprised.

"I don't know… it just is too slimy," she replied taking a handful of carrots and a few packages of beans from the shelves.

"Slimy?" he chortled now while shaking his head.

She shivered at the memory of the time they had to live on sea food on Teth when the local farmers had not been able to supply them in time. Apparently their livestock and crops had hit a bad year and they had to compensate with other foods. Struhn had agreed with her after the usual supply hit the grocery store again: never ever buy crab. Maybe the food poisoning had spoilt it for her forever.

"Don't you think that sea food just tastes like a wet tongue?" she argued.

This time he had to snort.

"I grew up on a water world," he finally managed to press out, "we lived on sea food."

That sounded down right horrible. Her face scrunched up in disgust.

"Don't give me that look," he teased grinning now.

She shot him a side glance. Not funny. Only it made him grin wider and even wink at her before moving along the shelves towards the dairy section.

It took them at least half an hour to put together enough to last them for a week and some essentials for a month or so. Though, they had to get a second crate she would have to carry back to their house. The Rishii at the check-out looked on bored as they packed the stuff neatly so the eggs wouldn't break or that the soft stuff was not squished under the heavier ones.

"Fett," she piped up when they moved to pick up the crates.

"Yes, Mari?" Boba asked.

"Is Monts going to be there for the Iridescent Festival?" she asked, looking hopeful.

Altharya looked over to Boba whose face looked passive as he regarded Mari.

"As far as I am aware he will be there," he finally replied.

"Oh good, remind him to bring something from the capital. We need more mural supplies," Mari said.

"You can tell him that yourself," Boba fired back.

"I lost his holo-frequency," Mari looked down, her feathers flattened on her head.

"Oh," Boba replied, "Well, I will tell him."

"Thank you. I will make sure to set aside some of the tihaar if some more gets through."

Boba's face lit up and excitement coloured his mental shields.

"That would be appreciated, Mari," he said inclining his head.

"We all know what you boys like to drink," Mari winked with her huge yellow eyes.

"We aren't exactly discreet," Boba smirked back.

"Just make sure they don't start drinking it in one sitting," Mari addressed her suddenly mischief twinkling in her eyes.

Altharya was slightly taken aback, the crate already in her arms. How was she supposed to reign in two bounty hunters? Didn't matter if one was retired. If they wanted to get black out drunk, she will not interfere. Nope. Hangovers she could deal with, not the drunken partying.

"I doubt I will be able to do much," she stuttered out her face burning up already.

"I wouldn't be too sure," Mari joked.

Why did almost everyone automatically assume they were together? Boba and she opened their mouths to protest only to be interrupted by the trampling of feet rushing into the store. Confused she looked behind to see a group of ten children. Most were Rishii with two Twi'leks and a human flocking around the sweet shelf.

"School break," Mari whispered shooing them away with a hand movement.

Relieved to not be subject to more jokes on their supposed relationship they hurried out of the shop, letting the door fall shut behind them.

"So…," she started as they walked along the road towards their house, "everyone is assuming we are…."

She couldn't quite speak the word out yet. Voicing it would make it all far too awkward. Boba turned his head to look at her briefly before sighing.

"Better than them knowing what is really going on," he replied.

So he wasn't acknowledging it either? She looked at him as he turned his eyes away. This was going so well…. Somehow it just made her want to scream. Why?

"True," she conceded and they fell back into an awkward silence.

Children and adults rushed past them, the crowd outside steadily swelling up with the sun now half way to its zenith. They really had avoided the morning rush then. More people with armour showed up the further away they got from the town center doing their routines. Some cleaned weapons, trained in the garden or talked over fences with their neighbours. A few waved at Boba in greeting before returning to what they had been doing.

The water sparkled with the sunlight when they reached the outer parts drawing closer to the house. Should she go out for a swim at some point? The lake near their town on Teth had been contaminated, so she only ever got to swim when Soren's parents dragged them to the coastal towns for a vacation.

Something small tugged suddenly at her mind when they reached the edge of the property. Stunned she stopped briefly making Boba hesitate too.

"What is it?" he asked.

She shook her head, the feeling gone as soon as it had appeared, "Nothing."

"If you are sure," Boba didn't sound convinced but walked onto the small footpath leading to the door.

Blowing out a breath quietly she followed him re-adjusting the crate in her arms. Nothing, it was nothing. The Force was weird on occasion and it had been too miniscule to be something significant. Only Boba stopped abruptly before the threshold at the door nearly making her walk into him.

"What is going on?" she asked peeking around him to see what stopped him.

She blinked.

Again.

Stunned she didn't even know what to think. A quick side glance showed her that Boba felt the same. What was there right in front of the door, wiggling slightly with its chubby legs and its tiny head bobbing around in their direction, was a tooka kit.

One that was still blind, eyes still shut, the ears still folded back and its tiny tail raised ram rod straight into the air. But she could see the pattern emerging already on its fur, brown with black stripes running along its tiny body. Frowning, she looked back. Surely there must be a mother tooka running around? They didn't just leave their kits on someone's doorstep like that.

"Uhm," Boba seemed to have found his voice, "What is this?"

"What do you think? A tooka kit," she replied immediately raising an eyebrow in his direction.

"I know what it is," he rolled his eyes at her, "but what is it doing there?"

"Do I look like a tooka mother?" she argued shifting the crate to the side in her arms to get a better look.

"Well it cannot stay here," he determined setting his crate down now and made a move to crouch down.

"We can wait until the mother comes around again."

Boba stopped and straightened back up again.

"How long?" he asked simply.

"A few hours?" she suggested with a shrug.

"Alright," he shook his head and gingerly stepped around the kit to open the door, "we can wait."

Sighing she looked back at the kit. Most likely just a few weeks old. Just then it mewled in a high pitch and her heart clenched. It was calling for its mother and she felt herself taking a few steps back at the sheer misery that pierced her skull.

"Altharya?" Boba asked noticing that she had stepped back.

She couldn't find her voice anymore, her fingers had grown clammy with how tight her grip had gotten. Something was wrong. Very wrong. Panic and fear flashed through behind her eyes and she stumbled slightly. A stone had dropped into her lungs, her breathing was so hard. Focus. In and out.

"Hey," a tight grip on her forearm made her suck in a deep breath snapping her eyes to Boba who now stood next to her.

"Is it the tooka?" he asked seriously.

She shook her head not sure if her voice was still gone. For moment he stared into her eyes, as if trying to see if she was telling the truth. Sighing, he let go of her arm to rub his forehead.

"Fine," was all he said before plucking the crate from her limp fingers and stepped into the house.

Just like that he left her standing in the middle of a courtyard, reeling from the short touch she had with the tooka's mind. Only… why did she feel like sinking to her knees and crying into the grass? Her knees shook when finally took a step towards the house.

Get a grip. This was just an animal baby's mind. Anything could have upset it, really. She was just overreacting. Breathe in. Everything was okay. They were in a safe spot. All she had to do was breathe normally and get into the house. Breathe out. Another step forward. Finally the stone in her lungs was gone, the feeling of a force dragging her down onto her knees also gone. She wobbled for a brief moment before catching her balance again. Boba leaned at the door frame, eyes solely trained on her as she made her way over to him.

"Better?" he asked pushing himself off.

"Yes," she muttered stepping over the kit into the house.

"We are going to wait a few hours," Boba sighed closing the door, "Then we will check if the mother has come back."

She stared at the grey metal of the door before she looked at Boba who was already walking away.

"What if the mother does not come back? It is still so young…" she asked quietly.

Even though it had been a quiet question, he still had heard it. His back stiffened at the question and stopped in the middle in his tracks. Slowly he turned his upper body around and gave her a long stare. Rapid flashes of… she couldn't grasp what they were. They stopped just as soon as they had started.

"We can still discuss it if it happens," he waved her off.

He didn't want to discuss it. Plain as day. What had set him off there? Nothing seemed different from what she could sense. Blowing out a breath, she looked away first and started to walk towards the living room not bothering to look back. As soon as she had collapsed on the couch, she peeled back the sleeves of her shirt. Just how black and blue were her arms? Blue, some nearly purple, splotches of colour littered her forearms and she didn't need a mirror to know that her back would probably look worse. Her eyes dropped to the floor and she drew her shoulders together as goose bumps rose along her neck. When had it gotten so cold? She rubbed her arms, wincing at the sharp strain.

The tooka. Must be. Just how? Why was she freezing, practically freezing in a warm house on a warm morning?

Boba stood behind her, she could practically feel his eyes glued to the back of her neck. Uncertainty flickered at the back of her mind, as if he was contemplating doing something. A bout of shivering shook her focus off of him and she had to stuff her hands between her knees. If this was continuing, she'd need to talk to Boba. Even if he did not believe her gut feelings on this matter, he could not deny right now it had physical effects on her. Saying it out loud would just earn her the question of why she was feeling this way and like with a few nights ago, she wouldn't be able to answer. He'd dismiss it again and she'd be alone in this shivering state of misery.

The door fell closed.

What? She turned around on the couch. Had she missed Boba leaving? Confused she stared at the spot on wall where the entrance door would be behind it. No, the air felt alight still as if he was still there. Frowning she kneeled on top of the cushions to lean over the back. Had he forgotten something outside? Goosebumps forgotten, she climbed over just as Boba rounded the corner with his hands cupped around his chest.

Frozen in her spot, she stared at his hands. Warmth started to flood her limbs, a strange tingling spreading from her fingertips to her shoulder blades. Confused she tried to search his face for any indication, but he was not even looking at her. Whatever he had in his two hands, he looked down at it with a sort of affection that thrummed so quietly she must have missed it initially.

A tiny mewl drew all breath out of her and she found her feet moving towards him as he stood there not even paying her any attention. The kit, he took it in. What had possessed him to do that? He hadn't seemed too bothered by it?

"It is too young to be left out," Boba suddenly murmured, but it sounded more like he was explaining it to himself.

Should she answer? Chewing on her bottom lip, she looked at the fingers where she now knew held the tiny body of the tooka kit. Maybe, it was best if she didn't say anything. Her fingers hovered closely near his hands wanting to pry the fingers away so she could see. In the end, he lifted one hand up shifting the baby into his other hand which fit neatly into his palm. Its head swivelled immediately to her and a slight shock ran up her spine. The fingers she had already stretched out twitched back.

"It won't bite," Boba chuckled quietly holding the hand with the kitten closer to her.

Swallowing heavily, she tentatively touched the kit's head to stroke a spot behind its still folded back ears. It stopped mid mewl, putting its head flatly on Boba's palm. What did that mean? Wide-eyed she stared at Boba who looked at her all of the sudden with a hooded expression. Heat flooded her face and she looked down, back to the kit who now curled up with its head nestled close to where the palm went over to fingers.

"We need a blanket," he broke the silence after a long moment.

She nodded, even though she made no move to grab the neatly folded up one that lied on the couch behind them. The kitten was so soft and fragile, she couldn't tear herself away.

A light tap on her nose, made her shake her head. Blinking in surprise she looked back up to Boba who sported a small smile. Wistfulness wafted over like smoke until it dissipated as if it hadn't been there to begin with.

"Blanket," he repeated his eyes crinkled in amusement.

Her mouth lifted up into a smile as well and she finally was able to retract her finger from the kitten. Right, blanket. It was probably cold and Boba couldn't hold it all the time. Quickly as she could, she grabbed the blanket shaking it out.

"Where do we keep it?" she asked.

"I thought we keep it in eyesight," he replied carefully transferring the kitten to the blanket in her arms.

"So on the table?" she nodded with her head in the table's direction.

"Yep," he replied curtly wrapping the fabric around the tiny body.

Why his fingers briefly lingered over hers, she didn't even want to think about. Overthinking again. The others around town were getting to her still. She had to take it in stride like Boba. Was he bothered? No. The kitten meowed once more in her arms before the tiny body settled down in her hands. Low purring reached her ears.

"Someone is happy," Boba commented before putting his hands on her shoulders to turn her around.

"Happy?" she asked.

"You have never seen or had a tooka?" he asked shock showing openly on his face.

"No?" she replied frowning.

"They are happy when they purr," he explained with his eyebrows raised in amusement.

"I didn't know that…," she muttered looking at the small opening where the top of the kitten's head could be seen still.

Tentatively she reached out with her senses again, bracing herself for the onslaught of coldness once she touched the kitten's mind. Though, nothing of that sort happened. Only content sleepiness splashed at her senses.

"I see," she whispered in wonder walking with Boba to the table where she carefully put the bundle on the table top.

"Now we wait," Boba said already walking into the kitchen.

Now she was able to tear herself away from the now sleeping tooka to follow Boba into the kitchen where the two crates had been put onto the countertops. Right, they'd need to unpack and store those away. They went to work in silence conscious of the small kitten that now was sleeping not a few feet away from them. Most of the food they had gotten could be put into the shelves while a few had to be put into the small freezer unit.

Breakfast was a weird affair with them manoeuvring around a blanket bundle that had a tiny patch of fur sticking out at one end.

"Today we are doing the same thing as yesterday," Boba announced after chewing on a piece of fruit.

She looked up and knew that her face showed her utter despair at the remark. Whatever her expression was, Boba chocked on the piece he was still chewing on as he tried to contain his laughter. His face turned red at his effort and she started to wonder whether she needed to start hitting his back.

After a moment he managed to swallow with great effort, his eyes already tearing up.

"Your face was priceless," he gasped out.

"Well…," she tried to think of something funny, "…nevermind."

"We cannot afford any delays," Boba turned serious now putting his bowl down.

She sighed before putting her spoon down, her appetite never being large in the morning. Another day of torture. Great.

"Dodging again," Boba smirked at her when they finally were outside.

The sun was now beating down on her exposed neck and shoulders. How Boba could stand to be in this developing heat in his armour was beyond her. Maybe it would give her some advantage?

"Like yesterday?" she asked taking a step back.

If that was the case, she might as well get ready to run. As if she would get any further than yesterday.

He nodded, "I will give you a five second head-start."

"How generous," she remarked.

"Five…," he cocked an eyebrow daring her to reply crossing his arms.

Fine… she whirled around and sprinted towards the corner house. It would buy her a few seconds more of running before he would catch up with her eventually. Which was inevitable, there was no denying it. How did he expect her to dodge an unstoppable force that was..

"Three!" Boba yelled and she cut the corner that moment.

Air rushed past her cheeks and she dove into the shadow that the house threw onto that side of the garden. She'd be half-way along the wall by the time he'd stop counting and then he'd catch up to her latest by the time she reached the next wall's half-way point. Indents in the grass around her were proof enough of their tries yesterday.

She did not hear the last number. Might be that he didn't bother yelling it out. But she did not expect how soon she felt the air behind her move suddenly. Already close behind her?! Arms wound around her waist. Her feet left the ground as they skidded across the grass. More like she felt like she was dragged with her limbs flailing while Boba kept his rather tight grip on her. Sharp pain shot up from the various bruises along her arm and hip. Hissing she sucked in a breath to keep from whimpering.

"Again," he stated drily, letting go.

Her left arm was buried underneath her chest and she had to crawl to her fours to get up. This was going to hurt by the evening. Brushing off dirt clumps from her pants, she stood up in front of Boba who seemed unaffected from the tackle.

"We are going to keep doing until you managed to cross half the house before I catch up," he determined.

She had to groan. This was going to be a long day…

By the twentieth try, her legs refused to work and get up. Lying on her back she stared up to the cloudless sky. This time she had managed to reach a few feet further than yesterday until Boba crashed into her again. Breathing out she rubbed her face. Why? They were getting nowhere! At this rate she'd break a few bones.

"Tired?" Boba asked while his tone was light with hidden laughter.

She lifted one hand away and looked up to Boba's face hovering above her with his feet near her head. Shadows hid his face, so she could not see his expression. Was he mocking her or genuinely amused at her antics? Frowning, she squinted up at him. Stars, even trying to sense his thoughts was way too much effort.

"No," she muttered, "My legs hurt."

"Already?" he kneeled down.

His face finally was visible again and she could now see how he was biting back laughter. Well, she could admit that she fell rather funny and probably had her hair sticking out of her braid too. From the feel of it she also had a streak of dirt on her cheek too. All in all, she was definitely the picture of hilarity.

"Yep," she answered pushing her elbows back so she could sit up at least.

She swore she heard a quiet chuckle and felt a faint flash of amusement as she struggled to push her upper body up. Grumbling she heaved herself up, fully expecting Boba to burst into full-blown laughter at her attempt. Except. He didn't. His hand slid between her shoulder blades and lifted her up effortlessly. Some sort of prickling started where he touched her which spread out to the lower back. That feeling started so quickly, she could not prevent the flinch away. His hand jerked away and she had to support herself on her hands.

At least he did not ask or address it. Though… she had to bite her lower lip, saying nothing was even more awkward. Ignore it. By evening, they would be back to talking again.

"We will do this exercise until you can dodge me five times. Every day," he finally interrupted the silence, tone serious.

She had to bite back a groan. Every morning, she'd be flung off her feet and be hobbling around the house for the rest of the day until she learned it. Is that how he learned it?! Was that how most people learned how to dodge?!

Finally she forced herself to nod. As if she had a choice here….

"No complaining," he warned lowly watching her struggle to her feet.

"What now?" she asked now on her feet again.

He just smirked and she felt herself shrinking away. Oh no… now it is onto the other dodging part.

Three seconds later she was back on her feet, staring at the sky with a sharp pain in her shoulder blades. It had been so long since she had practiced safe falling. Force, her stance was off too. All Boba had to do was just tap her and she would fall over. At least that was how it felt occasionally.

"Focus," Boba remarked above her, standing over her legs holding up his hand to get her up.

"On what?" she spat, rubbing her right elbow that still stung.

"Your feet," he frowned, "you almost immediately shifted backwards when you realised what I was going to do. It was easy to throw you off."

"Backwards?" she asked.

He fell back onto his heels apparently mimicking her previous stance. Oh. So… that was how he had managed to always knock her off.

"Look," she finally forced out, "Last time I had combat training was how to shoot a rifle in case a patient got rowdy."

"Saves me explaining them to you," he retorted bluntly now back in his usual stance.

She rolled her eyes in response. Was this funny to him? Though, his face showed no expression other than seriousness. Stars, it would have been better if it had been meant as a joke. Were they pressed for time?

"Would it hurt to show me once how to do it?" she asked pleadingly.

Maybe it was how pathetic she looked, dirt sticking from all kinds of places or was it the way she looked up to him, all desperate and bruised. Not a moment later his face softened slightly, his eyes dropping to her crossed arms.

"Watch," he finally said after just staring at her for a short while.

Then he shifted into a stance. One she recognised. Wide eyed she remembered from where. From the temple, back when she had had her first combat class! How had she fallen so out of practice that she could easily be thrown off her feet? Huffing, she slowly tried to imitate what he was showing her. If this was any indication, she would have made a bad Jedi. Or none at all. That option had been in the back of her head after a boy from her clan had been taken away for Dantooine.

It no longer mattered. Why was she even thinking about this? Focus.

She looked up at Boba whose face was unreadable again, the air unnaturally still around them. Weird… shouldn't she usually sense something? Not even a prickle of thought. Suddenly he shifted forward shoving at her shoulders. Surprised she opened her mouth. Whether to yell or cuss at Boba, she did not even know that moment. Whatever would have come through.

Though… she did not fall. She was still standing! Swayed backwards? Maybe a little, but she had caught herself to fall back from her heels. A smug smirk was his only reaction as he crossed his arms. A tiny spark of… pride flared up and was gone almost immediately. With mouth still open she blinked stunned at Boba whose smirk grew wider at her expression.

"Hey…," she started to exclaim audibly the giddy feeling that spread through her arms now.

Before she could even form a word though, her head flew through the air just as her arms registered another shove. What...? Her shoulders were too numb already to feel the pain from the impact. The blue sky was the only thing she could now see. She exhaled long and loudly. Great! Shifting her head on the ground, she looked over to where Boba stood. That stupid smirk was still plastered on his face and this time he oozed smugness.

"What was that all about?" she demanded angrily sitting up on her elbows.

He huffed in inaudible laughter, "You dropped your guard at this tiny success."

"So you just had to push me over," she deadpanned sarcastically.

"Yes," he now was laughing.

Grumbling she rolled over to sit up on her knees now. So funny… Certainly. At least someone was entertained by all of this. On her feet again, she waited for him to stop laughing. Lips pressed tightly together, she watched him laugh a bit more. She was ready again to be pushed around.

"Done?" she asked.

"No," he grinned.

The entire day went like this. Her failing and succeeding occasionally. At least it was a step-up from before.

* * *

The sun was already setting by the time Boba let her stumble inside the house and the shower. How he still looked like he had not even chased her around the house all day was beyond her. Did she put up so little of a fight that he barely had to expend the effort? Dirt clumps dangled from her arms and legs while grass stuck out from her braid as she finally wobbly stepped into the fresher. A strand had gotten glued to the bridge of her nose with sweat. Only lifting her arms would waste too much energy right now.

At some point the water going down the drain was muddy brown when she looked down to see how badly she was beaten up again. The previous bruises on her forearms had grown a deep dark purple. Softly she prodded them, feeling how tender the skin was. Hissing she let go. Was this how he had trained when he had been younger? Had his father, this Jango Fett, trained him like that?

The tiles under her toes were cool when she stepped out, dripping water everywhere. A miracle to feel anything through them. Tiredly she looked in the mirror, hair loose on her back as it was dried in the ensuing blast of hot air. Grey eyes stared back and she had to look away when she saw a yellow patch of skin already forming on her left cheek. How often had she fallen onto it today? Too many times to count. At this rate, every part of her will have been black and blue once or twice over before she got the hang of it all.

With a clean tunic thrown over, she walked in to the room where Boba stood in the middle of, holocom in hand. His chest armour was already off, probably lying on a chair at the tabel.

A horrified voice crackled from the com, "You say it was there all day?!"

She stopped in her tracks. Tehra? What did Boba need from her?

"Yes," he answered.

"By the plains…," Tehra exclaimed disbelievingly, "I will be right over. Two minutes."

Then a click and the call had ended. She looked at Boba who sighed.

"I told her about the tooka kitten," he explained.

Oh Force… How could she have forgotten about it!

"We did not see a mother tooka, no?" she probed embarrassed.

Boba shook his head saying, "Tehra has some experience with pets."

"Is that why she is coming over?" she asked head cocked to the side.

"Yes," he said.

She turned to walk over to where the bundle of blankets was still. Tiny flickering of… hunger rushed past her as soon as she saw the fuzzy top of the kitten's head.

"It's hungry," she said out loud.

"Of course," Boba retorted, "It was in here all day!"

"No need to snap," she shot back.

"What are you doing?" Boba questioned when she peeled back a layer to see the curled up kitten.

"Can't get that much air swaddled up like that," she explained.

"I think Tehra will bring some supplies with her," Boba said and she could feel him shaking his head even with her back turned to him.

She looked back to see Boba rubbing his face. Some sort of tiredness weighed her limbs down for a split second, resignation filling the air between them. Sighing she turned around to him.

"Will she take it with her?" she asked stroking the kitten softly.

"No," he shook his head, "cantina regulations here forbid that sort of thing."

She mouthed an oh at that. Cantina regulations? First time she ever heard of any.

"Some worlds are particular about the food and health rules," Boba shrugged seeing her stunned reaction.

"Is that often?" she asked raising an eyebrow.

Boba laughed, "No, you should see some in Hutt space."

She crinkled her nose at the thought. Teth had been at the border to Hutt space and their cantina had been accordingly aimed at a certain clientele. But even then they had some rules in regards on storing the food. Rather loose ones however.

"Have you been to many of them?" she asked curiously.

"One of the best places to pick up jobs," he stated drily looking at the door for a second.

It didn't feel like anyone was approaching. At least not in the near vicinity. A calm sense of safety shrouded them. No tingling at the edges yet. Good. For once she could fall asleep easily tonight.

"Are we keeping it then?" she asked quietly.

Boba's back twitched at her question.

"There is no us," he hissed sharply, "and I will only have it here until it is old enough to survive."

She held up one of her hands in defense. What had gotten into him? Frowning she stared at his shoulder blades that had drawn up tensely. If he had cramps later, he could deal with them himself. Just a moment ago he was laughing. Right, fine… no more referring to any type of we. What had she even been thinking to imply anything? Remember, captive and he was getting paid to hide her away. Against her will. Remember.

Looking down, she stroked the kitten's head again. It lifted its head to mewl into the stony silence. How could someone be so cold and kick it out once it was mature? The silence made her skin crawl the longer it continued. It was just wrong. Felt so wrong.

A tiny prick behind her left ear made her look towards the far corner of the house. Tehra? Should only be her. Boba noticed and shot her a dark glare as he moved to the door. Stars, she pinched her lips, he could be all sour as much as he wanted. She wouldn't engage. See if she cared! The knock came instantly after. Boba disappeared from her view and she heard the door being opened.

"Fett," Tehra greeted with an upbeat in her tone.

"Tehra," Boba said back.

She cautiously walked to the archway where Tehra now stood in.

"Ah," Tehra's face softened seeing her, "I see Boba here hasn't killed you yet."

Altharya's mouth fell open. What?! People had seen them? Her face was on fire. Hiding was no longer an option. The whole town probably knew now how bad she was. Great. Just great. Just what she needed!

"Don't look so shocked," Tehra rolled her eyes and Boba walked beside her looking sheepish for once.

"Tehra, I am just training her," Boba chuckled nervously while rubbing the back of his neck.

Tehra shot him a look that shut him up.

"I have seen the training," she said pointedly, "and I wonder how she isn't dead yet."

Boba looked exasperated now and scoffed, "You are exaggerating."

"The bruises tell another story," Altharya snarked back which made Boba throw up his hands just as Tehra burst into laughter.

"The tooka is that way," Boba growled pointing at the table.

Tehra turned around no longer laughing now.

"You should have told me in the morning, Boba," she admonished gently as she swept over to the table.

A small back-pack had been tugged under her back lekku and now was taken off.

"Thought the mother would have turned up by then," Boba explained moving over next to Tehra.

Altharya moved quietly to the table where the other two now stood with their backs to her. As if shew wasn't even there.

"Good thinking," Tehra stated drily, "but no mother means that either she is dead or abandoned it."

"So we are stuck with it?" Boba groaned loudly.

"Can't be that bad?" Altharya spoke up now.

Tehra jumped slightly, "Oh, sorry didn't you hear you there."

Altharya frowned. Hear her? She had not bothered to be quiet, though? Nevermind. Not important. Confused she looked over to Boba who now had his two hands slapped on his forehead. Tehra turned around with a bottle with a white liquid, must be milk, in her hands now.

"Well," Tehra smirked with a glint of a joke at their expense in her eyes, "Say bye to sleep for a few weeks."

Sleep? Why? Still frowning she looked back to Boba who just stared at the ceiling. Defeated.


	17. Chapter 17

"Say goodbye to sleep..."

Why did Tehra have to be right? Why hadn't she, a trained medic, thought about how time intensive the care of a baby creature was?! One of the first things any medical textbook mentioned in that regard? Was slapping her forehead appropriate still? No? Yes? If only she wasn't so tired….

Her eyelids still felt like durasteel clumps, even after standing in the bright kitchen at stars knew what hour in the morning for a mystery time span. Ten minutes? Half an hour? Blinking into the harsh light, she fixated her eyes onto Boba who stared blankly into the space between the cooking pad and their freezer. He was the one who insisted that if he was going to lose sleep then she would too. On any other day she would call him petty, but right now even that was too much effort.

Both of them were spaced out. The pot of the milk they had to warm up before feeding it to the kitten was stewing peacefully. No tiny bubbles yet. Still got a few more minutes of silent staring into nothing. A yawn fought past her composure and her hands were too heavy to even lift to conceal it. Boba shot her a half-tired glare with his hands full with the kitten that now meowed loudly for food. How could something so tiny be so damn loud?

Just then he yawned too. It was comical how wide his mouth opened. She had to giggle at the confused blink he did when he closed it again.

"See what you made me do," he muttered darkly re-adjusting the kitten into one hand to rub one of his eyes.

"I only made you yawn," she giggled just as the kitten meowed insistently again.

"Still," he grumbled and then looked at the kitten, "You will get your food in two seconds!"

Now her giggling grew louder which earned her another glare.

"You are talking to the kitten," she teased with a wink sent his way.

"They do understand," he defended himself, "Has the milk finished warming up finally?"

Blowing out a breath into his face, she turned to lean over the pot slightly. Some bubbles were forming and sighing she turned the pad off. The filling up of the bottle and the feeding of a hungry kitten happened in blissful silence, the both of them still fighting with drooping eyelids. Her cheek was resting on top of the table, watching the kitten's paws paddling through the air.

"I blame you by the way," Boba finally said indignantly after he had set the bottle down.

"Me?" she asked disbelievingly lifting her head off the table.

Even if didn't sound actually serious, she was not going to let it slide either. Who did he think he was blaming her? Petty, little…. Infuriating man!

"I didn't take it in," she protested leaning back in the chair.

"You were the one freaking out," he deadpanned wrapping the kitten up in the blanket again.

"I was not freaking out," she sputtered.

Liar.

"You were," he gave her a look.

"If you say so," she muttered in defeat holding out her arms to get the kitten, "Also we need a name for it."

"A name?" he asked stunned even as he gave it to her.

Her fingers curled around the blanket, the tiny kitten now purring loudly in content.

"Yes," she nodded, "Can't keep calling it a kitten."

"Well… can we just call it cat?" he suggested looking her dead in the eye.

She gawked. Seriously? Was he being completely serious? Apparently. She blinked. Once. Several times. No, she must have misheard.

"Can you repeat that please?" she asked stunned.

"Call it cat," he shrugged nonchalantly as he put his palms on top of the table.

So he was being serious. Could she hit him? Several times? If her hands were not holding the kitten itself, she might have. Blankly she stared at him for a few moments. Sighing, she got up, the chair scraping on the floor as she walked to the spot they had put the crate in.

"You cannot name it cat," she finally replied when she settled the rolled up blankets down.

"Well," Boba shrugged, "it is not like it is going to stick around."

"Still," she argued turning around to see him standing behind her with his arms crossed, "that is just… wrong?"

He tilted his head, narrowing his eyes at her for a second before a mischievous note floated past her. It was too quick and fizzled out before she could even fully register it. Had it been there? Never mind, she was tired. Could have just been her head trying to piece things together when they weren't meant to fit.

"How about," he said with his expression blank, "Kihroya?"

Actually, that was a nice name. Finally…

"I like it," she conceded.

Boba chuckled before yawning again. Now smiling, her eyes flickered up to his which shone with something she could not quite put her finger on. Sleep weighed down her thoughts before they could even reach the forefront of her mind. That must be it. She should really stop trying to put more meaning into things.

"Sleep?" she pointed to the stairs where their beds were waiting for them.

He shook his head, "Not yet. Go ahead."

Melancholy laced his presence all of the sudden and it left a bitter-sweet taste in her mouth. So there was something more. Her shoulders dropped. A memory. That was how memories felt like. Ones of a happier time. Dropping her eyes from his face to the ground, she shuffled with her feet. This wasn't something she was a part of. Sleep was calling anyways.

Slowly she trudged up the stairs, hearing soft foot steps behind her until… the door opened and closed. He could have stayed inside? She would have been gone and he would have had his space. Or, her stomach tightened, did he need more distance between the two of them? Turning around she looked at the closed door. The grey metal mocking her practically as it formed a barrier between the two of them. It was not her place to pry and if he needed space… then she should give it to him. As long as she could sense nothing wrong, then there was nothing to worry about. Right?

Just why weren't her feet moving? If he was a patient on Teth, she would leave him alone too. Why did she feel the need to follow him out? Shaking her head, she looked up the stairs where their room was. It was none of her business. Crossing her arms tightly under her chest, she walked up the rest of the stairs and into the bedroom closing the door behind her with a quiet click.

She leaned her head against the door, the cold metal clearing the fog in her head. The melancholy from earlier swished like a heavy curtain in the wind, revealing others. Tendrils of wonder and… a feeling of being lost crystallised at the back of her skull. Tears stung at the corner of her eyes. Why? Lifting her head from the door, she took a step back. Why was she close to crying? She rubbed at her eyes to get rid of the feeling. Only… her fingers came back wet, glistening in the moon light.

Breathing became hard, her lung constricting painfully. Opening her mouth to release a shuddering breath she rubbed her forehead. This was getting ridiculous!

Boba went outside. He was definitely off, not with how he felt in the Force. She went up and now she her body is behaving weirdly. It must be because of Boba. Could only be that. Otherwise…

Quietly she treaded over to the window that had been opened to let in the night breeze. Seemed like years ago when they had slept. Cold shot her up her fingertips and palms when she leaned on the window board. It was a pretty night sky. No clouds and just the twinkling stars. Inhaling, she looked over to other yellow spots in the distance. Where others must still be awake at this hour. Far more than she would have thought. With a short exhale, she looked down where the centre of melancholy stood. Back to her and his head arched far into his neck. Whether his eyes were closed or not, she could not really see from where she stood.

Should she go down? There was no way she could fall asleep with him being this way. Not with how strongly she felt it. No. He wanted to be alone in this, whatever he was feeling. Rubbing her eyes, she turned away from the window and crawled into her bed, staring at the ceiling.

Everything was and felt strange. Off in many ways. Stretching out her legs under the blanket, she turned on her side so she faced the door. Maybe she could ask? Biting her lip, she turned her head again, so she had a view to the stars from out the window. Or just maybe, she should not overthink these kind of matters.

Loud steps up the stairs made her flinch.

How had she not heard the door opening and closing? Frowning, she lifted her head. It felt like Boba. Good. No intruder. Letting her head fall back, she waited for the door to their room to open.

Not a heartbeat later it did.

"I know you were watching," Boba stated gruffly, "Come on outside if you want."

What? Confused she sat up quickly, her head spinning for a minute.

"You were thinking too loudly," she mumbled her excuse rubbing her forehead.

"Then don't focus on it?" he deadpanned leaning against the doorframe.

"You say as if that was easy," she said shooting him a side glance.

He chuckled, "Aye. Are you coming or not?"

"I am," she grumbled getting to her feet, "Are you feeling better?"

He flinched.

"I was never not good?" he raised an eyebrow in her direction.

She pressed her lips together. Alright, touchy topic. Probably would be for the best if she did not pry. For whatever reason he saw it necessary to get her down with him, she might as well get the time to see which star constellations were the same as on Teth.

Once outside, he steered her more off the path, however not too far away though.

"You staring at my back was rather distracting," he explained now pushing her to a stop at his side.

"Really?" she asked, tugging the sleeves of her tunic down to her wrist.

After all, the night was not that warm.

"Yes," he replied and she could hear the eye roll that followed it.

"And you walked up to me just so…," she started to ask before he shushed her.

"Yes," he said simply now sounding tired, "Altharya, please."

Her stomach twinged at the pleading tone. Shutting her mouth, she looked up at the sky too. Mimicking Boba's stance. The skin on her throat stretched painfully, but neither could she look away. A large faint, spotty white strip spanned the sky above their heads. One she had not seen from the window. One of the galaxy's arms. On Teth the one they should had been able to see was always obscured by the lights from their town.

But here? It was clearer than she had ever seen. Breathing deeply, she turned her head to follow the strip where it disappeared behind the roof. How small it seemed in the distance. If she only knew what systems were in it? A smile tugged on her mouth. How funny would it be? To know what is in there so far away, but she could technically see everything.

"Makes you feel small, no?" Boba's voice drew her out of her musings.

Quickly she glanced at to him. He was still staring up, but his stance had shifted so he was facing her more.

"Yes," she breathed, dropping her eyes from the sky to look at him fully.

It was too dark to see his face, but she knew he was smiling. Wistful sparks of… a memory floated past her. He was remembering. Chest tight now, she felt her shoulders sinking. Memories. If only she had a pleasant memory under the stars.

"My father," Boba sounded hesitant, voice steady, "used to show me the night sky when I was small."

One corner of her mouth lifted up. He could not fool her. It took him a lot of effort to hide the tremor that was vibrating in his throat. But she would not say that to him. Just wouldn't be right to do so. Not with the ghost of a man hovering between them.

"There was one constellation he loved the most," he continued, "I think you can see it from here."

His left arm touched her shoulders, drawing her to side slightly as he pointed at a group of stars that formed a rough circle. Fingers dug into the fabric of her tunic and a small shiver ran up her spine, causing her heart to flutter. Swallowing she twisted her hands together as she followed his finger. Warmth flooded her face and she could feel his cheek hovering above her hair, not touching it. A slight jump of a happy memory freed her lungs and she felt herself smiling fully.

At least it was not a sad one.

Then he let go, leaving her shoulders cold to the breeze. She swayed slightly from the loss. Almost shifting so she was closer to him. Almost. Catching herself, she favoured her left foot, leaning away from him. Hopefully he had not noticed. She was… oh this was far too confusing to think about.

"What is it called?" she asked.

"I cannot really remember," Boba said sounding embarrassed, "but… he always told me it had to do with a myth."

She looked back at him. A myth? Stunned she blinked at the star constellation. Myths had been … it felt like something she had never belonged to. No culture she could claim.

"What kind of myth?" she asked now curious.

"An origin myth," Boba said quietly the smile evident from how lightly he said it.

"Whose origin myth?" she felt stupid for asking.

Monts' datapad on Jango Fett had mentioned Mandalorians. But… what were Mandalorians in essence? Nothing came up when she tried to pin it down.

"For Mandalorians?" Boba replied questioningly, "You do know what they are?"

She looked to the ground, the heat in her cheeks now flaming in her shame.

"No," she answered quietly drawing her shoulders together, "Well, I heard of them. But no one ever said…"

"What they are? What they stand for?" Boba finished for her.

"Yes," she confirmed looking back to the sky.

Anywhere but him. Stars, why was she so stupid? How often had she had the opportunity to look and didn't? If she had even remembered.

Stop thinking.

Where had that come from? Frowning she looked to the side where Boba stood. Had he said something? No. That hadn't sounded like him. Was she going mad? Just then Boba sighed, sounding resigned.

"Jetii," he muttered shaking his head.

Jetii? What was that word? It sounded like Jedi, but… her frown deepened. Was he insulting her?

"Mandalorians," Boba started louder as if he hadn't said anything prior, "are a culture. Well, not really. A way of life is a better description."

She nodded. A way of life. Wasn't that a culture? Or was she missing a definition there?

"They, we, are bound by a set of rules. Resol'nare. As long as they are followed we are Mandalorians," he said absentmindedly, "to not follow the rules means you are longer one."

"I take it the Mandalorians are pretty strict on that front," she quipped.

Boba laughed quietly, "You could say that."

"I cannot remember hearing about them…," she said trailing off.

He knew what she meant. They had not been in the Clone Wars.

"There was a Mandalor," he began, "A Duchess, she kept them out of the conflict."

"You do not like her," she stated.

"She died before I could return to the Mandalorian space," he replied sighing, "and I was never part of it either."

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"I was born on Kamino," he regarded her for a brief moment, as if waiting for something.

She shrugged. Kamino? It sounded familiar… but she could not connect anything with it. Why was he looking at her like she should know something? The weight of his stare was starting to become overbearing and she crossed her arms. Why was he looking so disbelievingly at her?

"I am sorry," she said, "I can't make a connection."

For a long moment, Boba remained quiet, looking at her as if he could not believe what she had said. For a brief moment, bitterness wafted over which morphed then pensiveness. He was debating whether he should tell her. Would be good to know what he expected her all to know!

"Kamino? Not important," he said dismissively sounding sad almost.

"Obviously it is," she argued back.

"I was born and grew up there," he shrugged, "It has some importance to me. Was wondering if you heard about it."

Oh… yeah, that made sense. But it did ring a bell, one to do with one Jedi. Definitely... Just who? And why had it been whispered in the temple.

"But," Boba interrupted her thoughts a bit too loudly, "that star constellation was there too. Not always visible. Kamino was stormy almost all the time, but on the nights the sky had no clouds, it was there."

"Did you and your father do that often?"

"What? Looking at the stars?" he looked back up, "More often than you think."

"So…," she shuffled with one foot, "You were talking about an origin myth?"

"You want to know?" he asked roughly sounding genuinely surprised.

A tinge of hope flared up, her head light at the feeling. Untangling her arms she nodded, "Yes. You mentioned it and now you have to tell me."

That slight tinge exploded into a sort of giddiness that she had felt with children when someone promised them a toy or a sweet.

"So…," he sounded a bit awkward now, but still happy, "consider an egg."

She snorted in brief laughter. An egg? Alright, she could picture an egg. This was far too funny to take seriously.

"Hey, be serious," he remarked even though he himself was holding back laughter, "But can you imagine it?"

She nodded, now pressing her lips hard against the other. How difficult could it be to control her laughter? What had she expected honestly? Something grand? An egg. How simple and… she squinted up at the star constellation, in its own way symbolic. But so are many other things!

"Mandalorians had a religion once with three deities. One presented chaos, another stagnation and the last once was the god of luck or chance. They lived in there, forming and creating."

"Sounds…," she grappled for words, "rather harmonious."

"Well," Boba shot her a lopsided grin, "not for long."

"Of course," she teased back now regaining some control, "Otherwise there would be no story."

Boba snorted, "Either way, our chaos deity found the boundary."

She felt herself deflating, the urge to laugh now finally dissipated. A heaviness settling in her head and she felt herself leaning unconsciously more towards him.

"Anyways, once he had found the boundary he found out that they were closed in. So they started to try to break out."

"Of course," she muttered.

"It was in their nature," Boba shrugged, "However, his efforts attracted stagnation and chance."

"Hmm," she hummed still looking at the stars.

Somehow she could see it happening. Three primordial beings in an egg, trapped inside a shell as they just existed. The stars became a mass of blinking haze the longer she stared up.

"Stagnation did not want anything to change while chaos started to throw themselves against this boundary," Boba continued.

Somehow he sounded closer. Had he stepped closer? But the sky was too captivating to turn her head. It was not like he would do something to her. Was this star blinking at her? Within the milky strip. What people must live there, if it even had planets.

"Were they called chaos, stagnation and chance?" she heard herself asking.

"They have proper names, but would you remember them if I just told you them?" Boba asked, though it sounded as if he was stating something obvious.

"True," she conceded.

Since when had she been smiling? Her cheeks were beginning to strain slightly. They normally didn't hurt when she did! Or had she not smiled so long lately?

"Because chaos kept throwing himself against the shell, stagnation bit them and threw them away. Though, they did not know about the nature of spheres," he huffed a short laugh before continuing, "so all they accomplished was weakening the shell further."

She remained quiet.

"At some point it broke, expelling the three of them and all they created," he finished.

For a moment she stood there, not quite sure that it was the end. Sounded and felt like there was something that would follow from it.

"That it?" she asked, turning to him.

He had not moved from where he had stood. Why had she sensed him being closer? Frowning, she rubbed her cheek. Her tiredness. Must be it. Anything else was too much to think about right now.

"No," he started to grin, "There is more. But that is for another time."

"Tired?" she teased already turning to walk to the door.

"What do you think?" he challenged laughing as he followed her.

She smirked back before opening the door. Eyelids heavy and sluggish steps, they threw themselves into their beds, passing out immediately. The stars blinking through the still open window.

* * *

"Altharya?" Boba asked not turning around to her as he looked towards the lake.

He was turning a thought over in his head, the whirrings clicking in her ears and she squinted up at him in the high standing sun.

"Hm?" she hummed when he did not continue immediately.

"Did they teach you how to swim?" he asked crossing his arms.

They? Stars, the ways he took to avoid talking directly about them. It was starting to become comical. Though… pushing him about it seemed not right either.

"Yes," she replied.

Where was he going with this?

"A day of rest should do you good," he shrugged not looking back at her.

Rest? Was he…

"What do you mean?" she asked directly.

"Well," he was smirking now, even his eyes were wrinkled in genuine joy, "would you consider swimming less bruising than what we have been doing so far?"

Oh… that was unexpected? Her mouth fell open and she stared up at him for a moment before a giddy grin spread on her mouth. Swimming… it had been so long! Would be good for her muscles too, from what she had read the water could soothe some of the ache. The waters on Teth had been not safe for her and Soren and by the time they might have had the strength to swim against the currents, there had never been time to get away from town.

Not half an hour later, she threw herself into the cool water. Almost sighing loudly in joy when her muscle aches were drowned out by the gentle current. Could almost forget that she was here with someone. Her feet hit round stones at the ground and she looked down. It was shallow where she stood and clear enough to see her toes wiggling.

That was strange. The ones she had seen had been not transparent or downright dirty. At least she could wade around for a while before getting to the deeper parts.

A loud splash to her right made her turn around. Ripples and foam spread out from Boba who grinned widely from where he had jumped in.

"We should have an hour before we are flooded by the rest," he nodded his head towards the main bulk of the town.

"Do they come here often?" she asked grasping at a boulder that jutted out where the ground had a dipped down so her toes no longer could grace it.

A water drop ran down the middle of his chest… Alright, look away! Only now her cheeks were flaming red. Stars, this was humiliating.

"Yes," Boba waded over to her rubbing his face before his eyes landed on something hidden by the boulder, "And we are already getting company."

Oh? She heaved herself up on the rock so she looked over it to where Boba was looking. Damn, he was right. A lone figure was approaching them. Slow and with hesitant steps. Light crackling of fear surrounded him and she lowered herself back down.

But fear? Here? Hadn't Boba said that this town was safe? She could sense it from this far away? Closing her eyes, she stretched out to the Force. Fuzzy shapes took form in her mind, like she was used to whenever she had tried to reach out to it. But… that fuzziness had more defined edges and shapes. Two human-like shapes with tiny dots glittering around them.

"Rion," Boba greeted the figure ripping her out of her focus, "Haven't seen you for a while."

She opened her eyes staring at Boba and the male Zeltron who had approached.

"You know," Rion sighed, "Jobs and then you are barely here anyways. No wonder we always miss the each other."

Boba huffed, a grim amusement flickered up before it fizzled out almost immediately.

"You look like shit," he commented bluntly.

"Been a rough couple of days," Rion sighed taking his clothes off, "And since it is getting hotter now, I thought I'd go for a cool down."

"Job?" Boba asked still not moving in any direction.

"Arions wanted someone to have a look on the Brent border town," Rion shrugged before letting himself fall into the water.

A loud splash filled the relative silence over them until Rion resurfaced again, shaking his head making water drops fly everywhere.

"How bad is it now?" Boba asked quietly.

Weariness sparked up around him, colouring the previous relaxed state. Tensions? Oh right, the Arion and Brent conflict… how could she forget? Rion did not answer at first, his eyes fixed on her. But somehow there were no flickers of recognition of her presence? As if she was invisible….

"Pretty bad," Rion yawned, "Both are gearing up for something major. Frankly, my advice? Get out of here by next year latest."

"Definitely going to come to blows then?" Boba asked lightly.

That had been no question, more of a statement phrased as an affirmation of when. War was coming. Only when was the question. Though, she pinched her lips, by then Boba would either relocate her somewhere else or she'd be with Vader then.

"If not earlier," Rion answered before throwing a handful of water in his face, "Look, Fett. I'd rather not talk about it right now."

"Fair," Boba conceded already turning away.

Rion's eyes widened, fear shining through at the motion just as his hands started to tremble. Something was going on and he was about to spill what was bothering him. Without even acknowledging her in any way.

"Fett….," Rion called suddenly.

Boba turned around, a questioning eyebrow raised in his direction. For a moment, determination coloured Rion's mind until… wariness won over and he shook his head, "Nothing. Don't mind me."

She stared at this Rion whose shoulders were hunched back over, his mind warring with itself. Guilt... it was guilt that made him recoil when Boba put a hand on his shoulder.

"You look like you saw a ghost," Boba probed, concern lacing his tone.

"Just tired," Rion shrugged him off wading deeper more towards her, "Honestly, forget anything I just said."

"If you say so," Boba replied hesitantly his eyes glued to Rion's back.

"Are you staying here for a while?" Rion asked turning around to start floating on his back.

"For a few months, aye," Boba replied nodding slowly, "Major job preparations you see?"

"So that is why you have a partner with you?" Rion joked forcing out a small wry laugh.

"She is here you know?" Boba raised an eyebrow at the floating man who froze in shock.

"Wait, what?" Rion yelled twisting back on his feet spraying water everywhere, "She is here?! Where?!"

"She is behind you?" Boba sounded confused now, looking up to her.

Rion whirled around as fast as she could in the waist deep water, his face swivelling around in an arc frantically looking for her. How come he did not see her? She was not exactly hidden! Actually she was in plain view! Looking back to Boba, she shrugged at him in confusion before pushing herself off the rock.

Still… Rion's eyes didn't seem to quite land on her yet. Always roaming over, not slowing down. Not even a slither of recognition in his mind.

Just then Boba's eyes narrowed, anger surging around him and she could feel herself shivering.

"Fett, are you playing a joke on me?!" Rion snapped annoyed.

She stared at Boba whose mouth was now pinched into a thin line, his mind now racing too fast to even attempt to grasp any thought.

But then… she could feel how Rion's annoyance wavered into confusion as he twisted around, facing away from her.

He truly had not seen her.

Was she invisible?

* * *

Hours later, when their lips had grown blue and their skin wrinkled from the water, they were on their way back to the house. Rion had finally seen her, not a minute after Boba had pointed out where she had been. In the end she just told them that she had hidden underneath the water, to pull a prank on Boba. A lie that had made Rion giggle, the tension fleeing from his chest when she said it.

Though, Boba's eyes sometimes were glued to her back whenever he thought she would not notice after that. Mind closed off, colder. Even flinched away from her at once. Miniscule twitches, before he had to tense his muscles to ease back in a normal stance.

It had hurt… more than she had thought possible.

Far more than it should have. Honestly, why would his reaction upset her so?

If only she knew why too. Maybe, she glanced over to him a step ahead of her, she should ask? Or not. Usually these things were alright by the next morning again. Whatever had happened…. Well she had an inkling what it was and she needed some space and time alone.

Away from everyone.

If everyone just encompassed Boba at this moment.

Inside, he brushed her off, storming up the stairs not even deigning to look at her. Not a moment later, the door to their room slammed shut just as stabs of boiling fury ran through her head. Seemed like he just gave her the time and space she had wanted. As much as it made her chest twinge and hurt with that anger. She had to swallow. Tinges of worry shone through suddenly now. Then… sadness?

Why? What was there to be sad about?

Even the kitten had burrowed itself deeper into the blankets when she threw a look into its crate.

Why was everything so complicated? Now the Force was playing tricks on her, Boba… whatever she felt was stupid. She gripped her hair while looking around the room. There was no way she would be able to focus now.

Hang on…

It all started with Boba…, never had anything like that happened on Teth. Well, only when she had thought she was in danger. Think. Think. Tehra and this Emmet did not notice her that one day. Today then, this Rion did not see her at all. For nearly a minute!

What had changed?

Water? Did being in the water bring it all out? Or more –amplified- it all? Was this why Struhn moved places haphazardly in their first year on Teth? Away from the coast line to the rock tableau in the jungle? Had she forgotten something?

Though, when they left the lake had been full with other people splashing about. Not somewhere she wanted to test this out. Unless she waited until it was night when no one would be around to see her using the Force. A town full of bounty hunters was the worst place to do anything with it frankly.

But if this was going to keep happening, she would have to work on it herself. If more of these accidents happened, someone else would catch on her sensitivity. The ensuing carnage was not something she'd wish on anyone.

And she would have to do this alone and away from everything else. Though, she winced when she looked back up to where their room would be, she'd have to start thinking of excuses why she wanted to go to the lake late in the evenings from now on.

* * *

By the time the sun had begun to set, Boba still had not walked out of the room. The sky had coloured into a deep grey-blue from the bright orange pink minutes ago. The anger had cooled down to a hard and silent fury simmering ball where the desk was. Who would be stupid enough to disturb him?

Not her.

She had her own problems to sort out right now.

Since when had she started to think about the Force as a problem?

All of this was rubbing off on her in a wrong way. Maybe it was good that she now had some time and space to herself. To sort that all out. Without any interference from anyone. Especially Boba. She kicked a pebble away from her walking to the small and hidden place she had found earlier on. Two trees with long and drooping branches had formed a sort of purple-leafed curtain around a small dip in the bank.

A good place to not be seen immediately and be close enough to the water to see the results. Not even a breeze was blowing when she slid down the bank to the waterline where a few fallen leaves floated.

Now what? She had not thought not that far ahead. All the way over, she had been more anxious about Boba running after her. How did one use the Force consciously? All she knew about was how to sense things, anything more direct had been done in moments of panic.

And apparently becoming invisible….

How was she going to explain this later to him? There was no point beating around the bush should he decide to confront her about it. He knew what had happened and just played along.

Sighing, she rubbed her forehead as she kneeled down on the wet earth, knees almost touching the water.

So… water. Her only way to discover how to control these incidents it seemed. Hopefully it could help in the end. Hesitantly she stretched her fingers out, the tips still wrinkled, and dipped them into the cooled down and still water. No tingling spread from the tips, like before. If she could move the leaves… Glaring hard at the leaves, she tried to force the familiar tingling to appear on her arms.

Move!

Nothing. The leaves did not move.

Oh… Disappointed she withdrew her fingers, to clench them into her tunic. What had she thought? That it would work immediately? How stupid was she? Hadn't Knight Trillen once mentioned to one of the Masters that she was weak in the Force? Because she could not move a feather back then? Even after countless tears and hours into the night staring at that stupid feather trying to make it move. If the attack on the temple hadn't happened, she would have been shipped off to Dantooine. To be out of sight as a failed Youngling.

What had made her really think she'd succeed now?

When she had been able to push someone off a platform to their deaths.

If only Knight Trillen knew, but they were dead. Killed by stepping in front of her and other younglings even though they never seemed to care before.

Stop. One step at a time like Struhn always tended to say when a medical area got hard and she wanted to give up.

She had gotten further than all the years sheltered on Coruscant in more than a few days. Probably further than allowed in the Order. A medic… not a farmer. Maybe it had been for the better that she was no longer a part of the Jedi.

Unfortunately, none of this reminiscing was helping her. The Force didn't like coming to her aid when she was not in grave danger, or when it was not appropriate to disappear. Why did she think it would be easy? Everything was a fight, there would always be resistance. Hadn't she learned that the hard way?

This was going to take long and hadn't Yoda always said that every journey started with one step? Or something along those lines. He only ever really talked to her once. And then only because the Knights weren't there to steer her away.

* * *

 **AN: I know I am late. There is no excuse :/**

 **Do let me know what you thought though! Every review is appreciated! Chapter 18 is currently being written still.**


	18. Chapter 18

**AN: Happy New Years!**

 **Bobafitx: Thank you for your review :) the reason why I am stalling this much is because of the power imbalance in their relationship. Boba did kidnap her while she is to some extent still his prisoner. Given that in story time we only had 8 days pass (give or take a day) it feels a bit too early to go down that route fully. It will be talked about and the power imbalance will be addressed and sorted down the line, but it does involve some setting up and a more solid formation of a trust basis.**

* * *

It was storming still on Teth. Grumbling Struhn looked away from the window he had been staring out from. The street leading out of the town were now slippery and fatally dangerous slopes. No way to get out without using a ship or a speeder. Which no one had done so far, the noise and the shaking of the buildings would have not been easy to miss. No one would dare to do something this risky after what had happened.

Though, none of the inhabitants here had dared to walk even ten feet into his vicinity.

Frankly, he could not even blame them. Altharya was gone and they all had done nothing. No help, no messages to him while he was in surgery! They all knew that as soon as he was done, he'd have gone after her.

Did anyone say anything? No! They did a _day_ later! When Boba Fett had already left the system!

Well, they all could forget the medical station. Closed. Would never be opened again and they all had known that would be the consequence. Apparently medical care no longer ranked high among their priorities.

Fine by him! There were enough doctors out there who would love to settle here. At least he had a medical degree and could start in any respectable institutions! Something he had hoped to do once Altharya had gotten her powers more under control so he could write a recommendation for a university in the corporate sector. They could have moved there and maybe forget that ten years of hiding had ever even happened.

Struhn stared into his half-empty glass on the table in front of him. The cantina was deserted with only him and its owner who wordlessly scrubbed that same glass clean. Eight days… It had been eight days since he had called Renstan frantically, failing to explain what happened until after thirty minutes of stammering he had finally pressed forth that Altharya was gone. _Kidnapped_.

As soon as he had coherently put down the events of the evening before, Renstan had assured he'd be on his way, but that he was in a different galactic arm entirely. Would take a few days…. Great. What was Renstan even doing in deeply controlled Imperial space? One would have hoped that the Empire would hamper his more foolish suicidal tendencies. Apparently not!

Seemed like this was going to be like the old days.

Not something he had particularly missed.

The door to the cantina swished open, revealing a cloaked and soaking wet figure stepping in. As drama inclined as ever. Nothing had changed in that regard. Somehow it was comforting to know that certain things would never change. Even after ten years on the run from an Empire breathing down their necks.

Almost comical. If only that man had bothered to contact them at all! Especially when Altharya's powers had manifested suddenly after he had been assured that the Force was weak with her.

Weak… his ass.

Tell that to his poor heart when he had walked in on the three spectral tookas running around their apartment, while she had taken a nap. That marked the first attempt to contact Renstan on his end, only to receive the shortest answer in all their years of knowing the other that such a thing is not possible with a youngling.

The smashed holocom had been not worth it, but not taking him seriously when it came to these things had been infuriating when they met and it had only gotten worse over the years. Last attempted holo-call had been after Altharya's fifteenth nameday. After Soren had left with his parents for the Rebellion and he had not been sure whether to follow or not.

Something he never told her about. Not that she would have understood why he decided not to join. A rebellion was no place for children, especially for ones like her. Born and raised to fight wars… No. He had seen and met one such group of men like that. Never again.

"Long time no see," he spat at the approaching _former_ Jedi Master.

Renstans' steps faltered, the cloak clenched tightly in his hands.

"Indeed," he replied hesitantly throwing a suspicious glance at the cantina owner.

"I am gone. Alcohol is in the upper cupborads," the old Zeltron shrugged throwing the cleaning rag over his shoulder and left through a door leading to his apartment.

"Since when do you…," Renstan sounded surprised but for once he had the sense to bite his tongue before continuing.

This was not the time for such insipid topics.

"Took you long enough," Struhn jabbed a finger at the chair opposite him.

"You know how long hyperspace takes," Renstan sighed, shoulders slumping in defeat.

"Still," he flashed the Jedi his teeth which made the other swallow audibly.

"Why are you so angry?" Renstan sounded confused looking like an animal caught in a light.

"Do I need to tell you?" he snapped jabbing at the empty seat again.

"Would be helpful," Renstan hissed, eyes narrowed, finally the Jedi friendliness gone.

Good. Meant that the man he had known for all those years was not dead yet.

"You promised you would stay in contact," Struhn snapped grasping his glass with whatever cheap alcohol they were given.

"The Rebellion…," Renstan sighed before shutting his mouth promptly.

"They were here, you know," Struhn crossed his arms for once feeling smug that he had the high ground in this argument.

Renstan's eyes widened just as his jaw slackened, but not enough to make his mouth drop wide open. For a moment, he said nothing, only rubbing his jaw. Obviously thinking. Thinking hard about what he had just been told. Weird. Frankly, Struhn would have thought that he had known and _approved_. Coward….

"That cannot be true," he muttered, "Organa helped us escape. There is no way…"

"Oh go on," Struhn hissed, "Tell me how you did not know."

"I truly didn't!"

He felt himself deflating. Renstan was not someone to lie about these things. Damn… it would have been better if he had a history of lying. But no! His fingers were twitching as his chest tightened underneath his tunic as the urge to throw his glass against the wall manifested more clearly in the alcohol induced haze. Someone was responsible here. And this someone was going to catch a fist to his jaw.

"If you had bothered to contact us all those years," he spat slamming the glass back down, droplets flying onto his hand.

"Are you seriously pinning this on me?" Renstan's eyebrows knitted together furiously.

"You were with them, were you not?"

"Do you truly think I would have allowed this?" Renstan asked sounding almost sad now.

"How would I know? When was the last time we talked?"

"Are you still angry that I doubted you on what you _apparently_ saw?" Renstan's eyebrows now had shot up to his receding hairline.

"I know what I saw and the amount of times things displaced without her touching anything occasionally…"

"She never showed telekinetic powers," Renstan waved off.

"Did you read her file?"

"No? No need to since it had been already decided that she'd be assigned to AgriCorps come her thirteenth nameday!"

"So? Vader obviously found something that got him interested!" he snapped.

At least Renstan had the decency to look down for a moment.

"Organa had assured me that her file had gotten destroyed," he mumbled putting his head into his hands.

"Either he didn't," Struhn held up a finger when Renstan snapped his head up, eyes flashing in outrage, "or, the Empire has better slicers than the one who had wiped the systems."

"Say you are right," Renstan admitted gritting his teeth audibly, "And we missed something in the temple…"

"I am right," Struhn interjected tapping a finger on the table, "You know I would not have contacted you if I wasn't sure…."

"Struhn," Renstan sputtered out desperately, "I know. But that has never been heard of!"

"Your point?"

"Illusions…," Renstan sounded lost, "even if she truly had the gift. I could not train her!"

"Because of what?" Struhn hissed.

"How would I train her in these things? Maybe the basics, yes, but… I could go so wrong with that!" he griped.

His head was already pounding. That self-griping… the twitching away from anything slightly risky… it was like being back in the war. How could someone not have learned from all their mistakes? Hadn't they hashed this out countless times?

"I know what you are about to say too," Renstan didn't even let him say it, "I learned. But sometimes you have to be cautious, especially about training someone. You can go wrong so quickly…"

"I taught her for years," Struhn said suddenly feeling more tired than ever, "Don't you think I would have a hunch how to approach any of it?"

"The Force is not…," Renstan was shaking his head again, "It is not so simple…"

"Can't be too different from teaching a completely new concept?" Struhn raised an eyebrow.

"How do you approach something that is so intimately personal to yourself?" Renstan fired back, sniffing his nose.

Was he… Oh. That had never happened before.

"You blame yourself," he stated leaning forward to stare at Renstan more closely.

Watery eyes, cheeks blotchy red and his robes were crumbled. Not the perfect Jedi anymore. As if he had been that before, but… he knew the man better than maybe even the Jedi Order. Everything was crumbling around him and now he was realizing how wrong they both had been.

"Should have sensed it," Renstan quietly admitted, "There was always something I sensed… but I thought…."

"You thought what you had been told to think," he finished for him, "I had to move our hiding spot once. Remember that incident with the tookas?"

Renstan huffed a dry laughter, now rubbing his left eye viciously.

"The spectral ones? I remember."

"Every time we returned from the sea, these things happened. So once I moved us to the mountains it all stopped," he explained.

"Oh," Renstan looked to the ceiling.

"You see?"

"You probably did more than we ever did," Renstan muttered still not looking back at him yet.

"She seemed surprised that she was allowed to approach me at all times," Struhn sighed.

"All these years…," Renstan looked at him now, "The Jedi failed. In all ways."

Struhn did not know what to say. It was true. The Republic was gone, the Jedi were the official culprits and the Emperor had too much control for anyone else to know better. A truly biting irony. If it wasn't miserable for everyone, he'd have laughed.

"You saved her though," he shrugged looking at the doors hoping it proved some consolation for Renstan.

He had paid for all the alcohol and the medical bay was never to open again. There were things he needed to show Renstan. Altharya's apartment was not too far away from his own, her own little space. His apartment had gotten too small for the two of them and he really had not wanted to keep her completely dependent on him. No…, not when he had hopes for her.

Damn the Fetts. Every time they screwed with his life. First the father, then his Clones and now his son! Why was he being punished? What crime had he ever done to them? That galaxy had a bad sense of humour.

"I did," Renstan sighed, "Honestly I thought that she'd be able to live like a normal citizen… that her powers were too weak to ever show or be of any interest."

"How…," he pinched the bridge of his nose, "well it is all in the past now. Our objective is to find her and you," he jabbed a finger at Renstan who swallowed deeply from his glass, "will need to train her."

Renstan held up his unoccupied hand in defeat.

"As you say," he muttered.

"I know you know Soren, the Zeltron," he started looking at Renstan whose head snapped up in recognition.

"Yes, his parents are worried sick," Renstan sputtered, though he was frowning at the change of topic, "You know where he is?"

"I found his body," Struhn heaved out just as Renstan's face fell sharply.

"Where?"

"At the temple nearby. Also where I found the bodies of the Rebellion and other bounty hunters," Struhn explained, "and I found hair."

"Hair?"

"Altharya's hair. Why was the Rebellion here? With Soren of all people!" he demanded jabbing the finger on the table.

"I cannot answer that and I told you that already!" Relion whispered shocked, eyes flitting around the room.

He didn't want to be here right now. Too bad, he was and he was going to listen and provide answers! Whether he had them or not, he would see.

"You sure?" he hissed standing up towering over the Jedi, "Are you sure?!"

"How would I have known?" Renstan scrunched up his face in annoyance while firing back.

Oh… now he was invested? Took him long enough!

"Aren't you with them?" he threw back.

"I…," Renstan groaned in frustration, "Struhn, I get you are angry. But why at me?"

He pinched his lips before he could blurt out anything he'd regret. For ten years he heard nothing from his closest friend, maybe someone who could have been more. But no…, lying low had never been in his blood. Always at the front lines.

They both had failed on so many levels…

"I…," he pressed forth, "She is gone… Soren is dead… Rebels were there. What do you think happened?"

"Vader put out a bounty," Renstan slowly said setting the glass down, "I knew about it, but I was ordered to stay put. Any movements on our part would just tell them where she lived… I told… Force," his face blanched stark white.

"You what?"

"I told Soren," he gripped the hair on his forehead, "What have I done…"

Oh no… he fell back onto his chair.

"Don't tell me he took some Rebels and…"

"Went to Altharya? Yes, but… why?" Renstan questioned pulling at his hair, "I do not understand."

"They were close friends," Struhn explained, "I never told his parents and Altharya didn't even mention it to me!"

"That bounty specifically mentioned Force-sensitive."

"I guess he pieced a lot together and," he had to rub his eyes that were starting to burn, "his parents didn't like the Jedi at all. Always blamed them in the beginning."

"Why you never trusted them?"

"Yes," he shrugged, "Did they ever trust you?"

"Me? No, but Soren… he seemed fascinated."

"How so?" he cocked his head.

Strange. Soren seemed to be more interested in those who had big guns and not someone who could not even hold them for long with pure muscle strength. What had changed in… oh. Six years? Stars he was getting old. They all grew up so fast.

"When he realized what I was…am, he started to shadow me and then ask questions. I would have thought that he had accepted me by the time he suddenly left."

"That was when he took the rebels to Teth…"

"Probably also alerting Fett to that," Renstan helplessly concluded, "I can't imagine what he was trying to do."

"What?"

"Save her?"

He huffed. Somehow he doubted it, but then again he hadn't seen Soren in six years. What would he know?

"What else? He didn't seem like someone who would use lethal force just to get rid of a threat," Renstan shook his head fervently in his denial.

"Neither to me. But he is dead. Killed with one clean shot through the heart."

"Fett?"

"There were many bodies in this temple. Time of death are all within all of their error of margin."

"Damn…"

"I suppose we have to do a call to his parents," he realized, "Poor them. First the daughter, now the son."

"They died," Renstan jerked his head up, eyes fixing him in place, "When I dropped out of hyperspace I got the message."

He blinked. That… Soren's parents had been capable people! Just, he could not fathom that they died. Though, he had to close his eyes to squeeze the corners of his eyes, many good and capable people die in conflicts. Something he should have been used to by now.

"How?" Struhn could not quite conceal the horror sneaking into his voice.

"The Empire," Renstant muttered darkly.

Nothing else could be said to that.

"What do we do now?" he asked quietly the Jedi who was looking like he wanted to wail at the injustices of the galaxy.

A sentiment he could understand.

"Find Altharya," he firmly stated, clenching his left fist, "I just hope she hasn't been killed yet by Vader…"

Right, he had not heard then… if he even had gotten over his reservations about traversing the world where legality was never asked about.

"The chatter in the bounty hunter crowd is that Boba Fett was seen in the corporate sector with a girl in tow."

Renstan's eyes snapped immediately to him, finally looking him straight into them. Clearly trying to process what he had been told.

"What do you mean?"

"Vader has other problems on his heel now than a force sensitive medic trainee from Teth," he shrugged.

What would he know the reasons? All he heard were rumours and speculations. If only the rumours included whereabouts. Corporate sector was huge! Thousands of star systems! Every system in it had a colony! They were looking for a needle in a haystack! At least those rumoured problems had a tendency to stick around for months if not a year.

Enough time to look.

If Renstan decided to stick through with it. Which might be a problem.

"So…," Renstan's eyes suddenly shone, the brown sparkling in the electric light of the cantina.

Damn him to all hells that there were in this galaxy. He was doing this again. Making his stomach flutter and his knees weak.

"We might find her," he finished for him, shooting him a half-hearted half-smile.

There was no energy for anything else. Not right now.

"Can you leave your station here just like that?" Renstan had furrowed his eyebrows, glancing at him from underneath his eyelashes.

Clear disapproval.

"They had one condition for me to remain and treat them here," he shrugged, "Nothing happens to Altharya and they were expected to step in. Did they? No. If they want to complain they can take it up with the dust we will leave behind."

This time the reaction was a raised eyebrow while Renstan chuckled.

"I suppose my ship is large enough to get most of your equipment with us," he conceded leaning back in his chair.

"Good," Struhn felt himself grinning.

"You wanted to show me something?" Renstan slurred as they stumbled towards the closed med-bay.

"Aye," Struhn mumbled, fumbling with his key card in his pocket, "Altharya made it."

"What do you mean?" Renstan frowned tugging at his collar.

Skin flushed while he blew out a long breath, cheeks blown up. Even after this long, he still could not tolerate two glasses of tihaar. How could he survive in a rebel base, where the booze probably flowed like water down a waterfall. To live dangerously means to live short. Some would celebrate a month longer with excessive partying.

He had seen that happening more than once.

If only he could return to Christophis and visit his parents. It had been so long, twenty years almost. Would they even welcome him? After the last words… he shook his head. What had been said, had been said. He had drunk too much.

That was it.

"She made it when we got here," he sighed finally sliding the card into the reader, "I don't think I can explain it appropriately."

Inside, he switched on the lights. For Teth he had a relatively clean and large apartment. Not as large as what Renstan was probably used to from the Jedi temple. But it had been enough for him and Altharya for years.

"Well," Renstan shifted awkwardly on his feet as he closed the door behind him, "I don't think I ever thought…"

Oh stars, would he please shut up? This was why… Never did he think! Or just forgot about others until things were right in his face. Clueless, like all the others in his Order.

"What did you think then?" he snapped.

"I thought," Renstan swallowed heavily, "That you would join the rebellion when she came off age. I waited and then Soren and his parents joined with news that you were established medics on Teth!"

"I did what I thought was right," Struhn hissed moving to the room where Altharya used to live until her move, "Joining the rebellion would mean sure death for her. Do you think I would let that happen? Or risk it for that matter?"

"You grew to care for her," Renstan muttered.

What? Wasn't that obvious?

"Of course?" Struhn dropped his arm, frowning at Renstan.

Had he seriously just… questioned forming attachments? Blowing out a loud breath, he just stared at Renstan who looked away in the end. He of all people?!

"Forgive me," Renstan looked lost now pulling his brown robe off, "That was stupid of me."

The 'yes' was on his tongue, would have been like old times if he had said it. All tease and smirks. But the old times have not been for a long time. So he kept his mouth shut to simply stare mutely at Renstan.

"What did you want to show me?" Renstan asked, looking away.

"Just go in," Struhn pinched the bridge of his nose.

Somehow it felt invasive to show him what Altharya had put together. But… she was gone and Renstan needed to see that they were not looking for a Jedi Youngling anymore.

"That is…," Renstan gasped out, "Those are my meditation beads!"

"She kept everything, you know," Struhn stated leaning against the door frame, "Standard grief process. After three years she moved past it. But she kept it, to remember she said once."

"I see."

"Will you help?" Struhn threw him a raised eyebrow.

"What do you think? Of course. We start in corporate sector?"

"Yes. Matra IV seems promising. I know someone who might help us," Struhn felt himself grinning.

"How you know these people…?"

"You really do not want to know."

"Consider that question shelved away then."


	19. Chapter 19

**AN: Sorry for the long delay!**

 **Also the guest review (vos) I got: Danke für den Kommentar! Hat mich sehr gefreut und auch mich motiviert etwas schneller zu schreiben. Genau! Die arme Altharya und ich sage nur eines, es kommt noch so einiges ;) Ich hoffe du magst das Update hier!**

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"Good!" Boba called out, coming through the wind rushing past her ears.

Her spine prickled near her hips, as if fingers were clasping them. She threw herself to the side, rolling across the grass before her feet instinctually touched the floor again, shooting up in a secure stance. Third attempt and three consecutive successes for today. Most of the bruises were a thing of the past now too.

"Well," she quipped when he stepped to her. "We have been at it for how long?"

"A month?" he grinned at her. "If you hadn't shown progress by now I'd put you as hopeless."

She punched his shoulder in retaliation. The nerve! But she grinned back, at least something was going as intended. Even if her sneaking out to the lake during the evenings was becoming more difficult and she had to stay in more than not. Still when she could, nothing _happened_. The Force hated her. What was the point in trying most of the time?

Trillen had been right. What illusion had she fallen for that she could do more without any help?

"You know this was the _easy_ exercise?" he laughed now, eyes twinkling.

Stars, groaning she took a sip, the more advanced things. Dodging and close combat. She threw him a glower while stuffing a loose strand into her braid again. Would he please stop being so cheerful? At her expense?

" _You_ said it was easy," Boba shrugged.

And she had regretted every moment since….

"I regret everything I said." she declared crossing her arms.

"A bit late for regrets now." Boba retorted.

"I will remember that."

"You have been saying that for two weeks now."

"The perfect moment will come, mark my words!"

"I am shaking in my armour." Boba mocked.

Oh, now she had him!

"You'd sound like a rattling skeleton," she giggled.

"How would you know?" he frowned in confusion.

"Remember…." she winked.

Understanding dawned on his face, horror peeking through, and she had to press a hand in front of her mouth so she would not laugh.

"No… I refuse! Do not breathe this atrocity in my direction!" Boba looked indignant.

"It was funny!"

"It was _inaccurate_!" he correctly hotly.

"But _funny_!"

"Not sure what is funny about an armour rattling parody of a Mandalorian…."

She rolled her eyes at him. Someone could improve their sense of humour… seriously! Considering that this show was running always in the early evenings, they occasionally saw it when eating. Every time he huffed in annoyance and started ranting at how unrealistic this was and… ' _not stealthy at all_!'. Only to turn around to see her suppressing a snort.

"You walked into this one." Altharya remarked smugly, grinning at him.

He narrowed his eyes at her a determined flash shooting through them. But then a flare of another presence entering the near vicinity made the left side of her neck twitch. At least her senses in that regard had sharpened. Whenever someone stepped on the path to the house she'd sense it. If only it didn't make Boba antsy once she told him.

Familiar laughter hung suddenly in the air and she knew who was coming.

"Tehra is coming." She said and watched when his smile fell and looked away.

"Suppose that was going to happen eventually." He muttered turning around already to walk to the front of the house.

Worry trickled through the laughter flickering in her head. What was there to worry about?

"Fett!" came a yell when they rounded the corner and saw Tehra standing in the middle of the path.

"Tehra!" Boba called back rubbing the back of his neck.

"Oh, still haven't murdered each other yet?" Tehra greeted them.

"Tehra." Boba warned propping a hand on his hip, "I am not…"

"You like her too much I know." Tehra interjected chuckling.

Her face heated up considerably when Tehra winked at her. Indignation flared up near her, but a sense of shame overshadowed it. Bitterness hung in the space between him and Tehra whose presence had grown solemn. This had been no joking, no… this was serious and Altharya did not know what it was.

"Philip is moping in the cantina and…"

"Tehra, I can't." He sighed.

"Why not?" Tehra frowned up at him, a hard stubborn glint in her eyes.

Boba groaned loudly. "Come in."

"Why not here?" Tehra sounded confused, shooting her a questioning look.

Tehra's squinted her eyes, turning over any possibilities in her head as she stepped into the house.

"Lots of explaining." He made an impatient jerk with his head, "And it is complicated."

Complicated, what was not complicated here?

Rolling her eyes she smiled at Tehra who had to bite back a chuckle as she shuffled inside the hallway. Though, then the glint of laughter went out and stark seriousness came over Tehra.

"Now, what is going on that cannot be discussed outside?" She asked then, crossing her arms. "This is unlike you."

Boba sighed and then looked at Altharya. "You met Philip yesterday."

She frowned. Yesterday? But they hadn't been outside for… except in the morning. So this was who he was talking to when she had gotten back from getting the laundry into their room. What did it have to do with anything here?

"And?" she shrugged.

Nothing had felt out of the ordinary, except the tinge of disappointment when she had come down and Philip's face had visibly fallen. Resignation had bounced between him and Boba when Philip had turned to leave.

"There is a party at Philip's place tonight." Boba explained. "And Philip is an old hunting partner of mine who's only around for a few weeks for supplies and he wanted to catch up."

Did he think she was going to take the first opportunity to run? Somehow he thought her more capable than she was. With Tehra being here… she knew too what was going on here?

"Why did you not?" she asked pointedly.

Irritation flickered up and Boba narrowed his eyes at her. Yes, she knew why. But he could squirm for a bit.

"We're in the middle of training." He argued smoothly.

"And are nearly killing each other while at it." Tehra remarked drily. "Frankly I am surprised you are not sick of the other yet."

Altharya glanced over to Boba who was pinching the bridge of his nose. Desperately sifting through his mind to find an excuse. Though… the dark bags under his eyes or the way he sometimes paused to stare off in the distance to the other houses longing clinging to his skin when he got back to chasing her, he wanted to be around others.

And she was the reason why he didn't. That hurt, more than she would have thought it would.

"I can't leave her here!" Boba blurted out pointing at Altharya.

"Already thought about that!" Tehra announced cheerfully. "She can stay with me."

Boba blinked, confusion flaring up for a brief moment. Then he looked at her, wavering now visibly and shifting on his feet. He really did want to go. Maybe Tehra was right… they both just needed a break from the other. Might clear her mind on what her feelings were exactly. As confusing everything was right now.

"I…." He wavered more, his eyes flitting between the two.

Why was he waiting for her to say something? If he wanted to go and Tehra offered to have her around, then why not? He seemed to trust her. Something she could use and not worry about being discovered using the Force if she went about it somewhat intelligently.

"I think me and Tehra have a lot to talk about," she forced herself to grin.

"Exactly," Tehra beamed grabbing her arm, "Girl's talk, you know."

Boba blinked again, this time amused, "Now?"

"Why not?" Tehra shrugged, "Bond some with… Kihroya!"

Now he laughed out loud, "I get it. Can she stay overnight?"

"I will think about it." Tehra rolled her eyes. "No, enjoy your night out. Also…." This time the air of light humour gone, dead serious now. "remember the rules."

Rules? Altharya looked to Boba whose face was now closed off, a tense flare before it disappeared. What rules were they talking about? Something pulled lightly at her forehead. Rules she should know and affected her…. Whatever was happening, it definitely was the cause of this sudden invitation.

"I never forgot." Boba grumbled darkly.

"Making sure." Tehra remarked turning to Altharya again.

Altharya had to swallow heavily when Tehra's steely glare settled on her fixing her into place. Her back straightened out, her throat too dry to talk in that moment. The only thing she could do was to stare back, waiting for Tehra to say something. But then her eyes softened as she relaxed her posture slightly.

"Come." She said amiably while walking over her to grab her arm. "Have to prepare before the other girls show up."

The grip on Altharya's arm was unrelenting and she was pulled around when Tehra walked past her. Prepare? Who were the others?

"Why are you picking me up now?" she asked astonished.

Tehra looked over her shoulder to shoot her a hooded look. Indecision flickered up in her eyes for a moment.

"Before he decides he does not want to go." She sniffed, looking pointedly at Boba. "And he really should have some time to re-acquaint himself with the rules."

Boba groaned and she could feel with how her back prickled that he was rubbing his forehead. Poor him, but she was as overwhelmed as he was. Those rules again? The village rules? How could she forget?! But they had followed those to the letter! Her skin crawled on her shoulders and she had to prevent a shiver when Tehra pulled her out of the house.

 _Ask her_.

"What is going on?" she asked, tone harsher than she had intended.

Cringing internally, she watched as Tehra slowed down to a stop. Surprise colouring around her montrals. Then with a heavy sigh, she let go of her arm and turned around. They had reached the edge of the courtyard still in plain view from the living room window, should Boba watch. Which he definitely was with how the back of her neck tingled.

"Has he not told you?" Tehra asked suspiciously.

"He told me about the rules here?" Altharya shrugged.

What else could they mean?

"By the plains." Tehra cursed rubbing her temples, a headache pounding subtly underneath her long fingers. "He really should have. Do you have any idea how much trouble you brought so far?"

How was she supposed to know? No one had thought it important to tell her! She could read no minds!

"I am sorry?" She started to say before Tehra interrupted her by shaking her head rigorously.

"It is not your fault." Tehra explained, more apologetic. "He should have told you, but it seemed like he was happier not to."

A knot formed in her throat the longer she looked into Tehra's eyes. There was something he should not be happy with being the way it was. Something Tehra loathed to intervene in.

"I am confused." Altharya voiced cautiously.

"There are unspoken rules when it comes to bounty hunters." Tehra grimaced. "I will explain when we are in the cantina."

Rules for bounty hunters… who would have thought and she was the reason why Tehra was interfering to begin with.

Altharya wanted to cry with how miserable she felt all of the sudden.

The cantina was empty when Tehra guided her inside and steered her to the back where the bar spanned from one side to the other.

"My flat is behind the counter." Tehra mentioned as she opened a gate waving her to follow.

"Does anyone else live with you?" Altharya asked.

Anything to delay the inevitable.

"I live alone." Tehra answered as she turned around to wave her through. "We'll have enough time to talk about it."

The stone in Altharya's gut grew heavier when she stepped through the gate which Tehra closed immediately after. Tucked between two freezing units that contained bottles of alcohol was a plain metal door. Easy to miss in dim light.

"Who runs the cantina today?" Altharya asked.

"No one." Tehra said lightly. "Today we are closed."

A day where everything was closed? How did that work out? Altharya's eyebrows shot up. On Teth the cantina had been open at all hours of a day. Then again the town had been fairly popular for covert traffic going from Empire to Hutt Space.

"The Arions do not want to have cantinas open on every day." Tehra shrugged and then took out a key card from shirt pocket. "Most hunters struggle with the rule in their first year, believe me." She giggled.

"I can believe that." Altharya agreed, crossing her arms.

Seemed like the Arions were fairly strict with their bounty hunter communities. Or was this the norm for such towns? Blue lights lit up at the side of the door, a low hiss from pressure being released and it slid open.

"Come in." Tehra made a wide arm movement that felt inviting, welcoming even.

And it worked… strangely enough. The knot in her throat dissolved and Altharya could finally swallow it down. Any nervousness fled her tense shoulders and spine when Tehra smiled broadly at her now. Altharya stepped into the spacious flat that lay behind. It was larger than the flat she had lived in on Teth, far lighter and… felt more lived in. Long blue flowing curtains framed the two large windows that let bright day light in. A dais rose in the middle of the room with big, colourful cushions placed on it. On the wall opposite the door to Altharya stood was a large screen of a holo-vision built into it.

"Do sit down." Tehra pointed at the dais. "I will get a snack and then we will talk."

Then she walked to another door where Altharya could only assume the kitchen must be. Her legs felt wooden when she stalked to the dais and sat on the outermost edge. A smooth blanket lay on top of it and she slid her hand along the fabric. Felt like the dais itself was padded out underneath.

It was comfortable and frankly she wanted nothing else than to throw herself into the large cushions and forget everything around. If only that would calm down the nerves that were strung tight now. So she waited for Tehra to come back out.

Not five minutes later the Togruta walked out with a bowl in arm, face blank with not even a ripple in the Force. The calm before a storm. What else could it mean after all?

"I can see the question in your face." Tehra remarked, sitting down next to her.

Altharya raised an eyebrow at the older woman who shifted the bowl more to the middle. Oh… she had gotten the lemon flavoured bites! How did she know those were her favourites?

"Boba mentioned something along the lines the other day." Tehra chuckled putting the bowl onto the floor at their feet. "Now onto the actual reason you are here."

Altharya had to swallow heavily.

"There is no way you could have known." Tehra huffed. "But Boba here is crossing lines that can't be."

Lines? Him? Since when was Boba concerned with rules? Scrunching up her nose she fished out one bite to roll between her fingers. Now why was she being told about it? Shouldn't Tehra talk to Boba in that case?

Unless she was the problem… Stars… this was bad and it meant…

"There are rules in the bounty hunting business." Tehra explained matter-of-factly. "For example, 'No bounty is worth dying for'."

Altharya winced. That had nearly happened if she hadn't stepped in. And then the other bounty hunters on Teth, they died to get her.

"There were quite a few hunters who died to get me." Altharya said quietly, tearing the bite apart.

Tehra sighed, rubbing the bridge of her nose. "Boba is a target himself, you know. Former bounties can throw long shadows."

"I don't know." Altharya shrugged.

"I talked to Boba when he got the bounty." Tehra informed her shooting her strange look. "Only he was given the bounty. So anyone else was after him."

"Rather simple way of looking at it." Altharya remarked.

"Not really." Tehra held up a finger. "It has to do with contract laws. Only the giver and the acceptor of a contract can fulfill it. Anyone else trying to interfere is automatically trying to steal from the acceptor. So even if they were after you, they by definition were also going after Boba and given that he is very prolific, I'd say some people were out for him rather than you."

This sounded so… outlandish. Legalities with bounty hunters.

"It sounds like I am considered an object." Altharya giggled in a weak attempt at a joke.

But Tehra did not laugh with her, and her own forced giggle faded quickly. Sadness, regret tinged the air around her as she glanced at Altharya for a long heartbeat.

"You _are_." Tehra muttered gently.

What? Her heart felt heavy when Tehra took a big breath, uncertain and unsure in the words that were floating audibly in her head.

"A bounty is defined as not a person." Tehra explained, more calmly now. "Once a bounty is put on your head and the hunter catches you, you are an acquisition. An acquisition is no longer a person and what they think no longer matter."

Oh… she looked at the yellowish paste she had rolled the bite into. Any appetite she had had was gone. What was she supposed to think? Let alone say?

"And another unspoken rule." Tehra continued gently, reluctance flimmering in the silence after her words. "A hunter cannot form an attachment to his acquisitions."

So this was where the problem lay: attachment. She squeezed the paste ball between her fingers. It was true… he was attached to her. As she was to him. This was a mess; an utter mess. One that should not have happened to begin with, but here they were.

What could even be done? Emotions could not be denied away! At least not easily.

"And… you know that he has gotten attached." Tehra finished softly. "As have you."

Regret shadowed over Tehra's sadness, pushing Altharya's shoulders down with its intensity. Even a flicker of anger shone up quickly. She had not wanted to talk about this, but had felt compelled to do anyways.

It must have gotten so bad that she had seen it necessary to step in. Was an unspoken rule that powerful? Tears pressed against her eyes and Altharya pressed a free hand against them. The weight of a loss pulled at her, closing up her throat. There were no words that could be said.

"In my experience, attachment to your bounty only leads to heartbreak." Tehra spoke placing a hand on her shoulder, regretful comfort radiating from it. "And he has had enough of that."

"I am glad you were able to come." Philip greeted Boba joyfully, arms wide and a large grin on his face.

"Tehra invited Altharya to her girls' night." Boba explained walking up to his friend who started to laugh.

"Tehra's infamous movie night?"

"Exactly those." Boba grinned back.

"I pity your friend." Philip snorted. "But come inside. Rion is already here helping me set up."

As if one could summarise the mess that was his and Altharya's relationship as friends. He himself did not even know!

"Set up?" Boba raised an eyebrow. "Since when do you need help with cooking?"

"No I don't." Philip waved him inside. "But I got a new toy."

"Toy? You mean you got the bigger grill?"

Philip snorted out a short laugh. "I _wish_! No, I got a bigger kitchen!"

"And…?" Boba was not quite sure why he needed help setting up.

"Means I have more dishes!" Philip rubbed the back of his neck, visibly embarrassed. "And I kind of underestimated the time to set them all up while I am cooking?"

"So you asked Rion to come over to help you?"

"And you."

"I feel so appreciated now." Boba winked at Philip who flushed a deep red.

Meant he could talk to Rion. Alone. Maybe he could find out what made him so skittish. If Altharya had unconsciously become invisible around him, there must have been a reason. One where his gut told him to he should know and his gut had a terrible tendency to be accurate.

"You should!" Philip growled. "First you say 'no' and then it is a 'yes'."

"You seriously still moping about that?" Boba laughed.

"Yes." Philip muttered darkly, then called out. "Rion, Boba is here to help you."

"Fett?" Rion's pale face poked out from one of the archways leading to the eating area in Philip's house.

"What's up?" Boba greeted him back, pushing his hands into his pant pockets.

"Nothing much." Rion stepped out into the hallway.

Rion looked like he had become a ghost since the last time Boba had seen him. Gaunt, dark bags underneath his eyes that shifted restlessly from side to side. Paranoia, chasing shadows that seemed to hide danger. A feeling he knew well. But here?

Then again, Altharya had been going invisible a lot around certain people. Something _was_ going on. Just, Rion would never dare or even think about bringing danger into this village.

"You two can go set up. I need to look after the food." Philip cheerily announced. Turned around and disappeared into the kitchen.

Rion sighed. "Come." He mumbled. "The sooner we get this done the better."

"You do not seem alright." Slipped out of Boba before he could bite his tongue.

Well… at least it was out now. Rion flinched hard at the statement, almost jumped out of his skin.

"What makes you think so?" Rion asked back, seemingly confident but the tremble of utter fear could not be hidden.

"If you are trying to hide your anxiety, you are doing a poor job at it." Boba remarked drily following Rion into the dining room.

"I suppose." Rion conceded quietly walking over to the pile of dishes that they would need to set up.

"What is bothering you?" Boba took a stack of plates and started to put them down on the main table.

"Oh…" Rion blew some hair out of his face. "Just a job gone strange."

"Strange?"

"A job that I feel is going to haunt me."

"I see." Boba looked down.

A lot of jobs can lead to later consequences. He should know….

"But you are safe here." He carefully spoke out. "No on in their right mind would even dare to offend the Arions."

Rion shrugged. "The Brents would."

Boba snapped his mouth shut. The Brents? Not good.

"I ran across another hunter who worked for them." Rion exhaled shakily. "And… I didn't know."

"So?"

"I said some things, did things…." Rion shivered violently. "I am hoping it won't follow me here."

"What did you do?"

"I told them about me." Rion shrugged. "And when I knew who they were working for… I have a mark on my head."

Boba set the plate down he had been holding. "Did you give them a reason to come after you?"

Rion blanched considerably at the question. "I don't know."

"You seem to know." Boba countered, raising an eyebrow at the now shivering Rion.

"I don't want to think about it." Rion muttered, looking down.

"Do you think you are in danger?" Boba prodded more insistently.

Nothing. Rion turned away. Distant, closed off completely. He'd have to wait to hear what had happened. Even if it was going to take months.

For a long while they set the table together, Rion avoiding his eyes and keeping himself the furthest away as possible. Instinctual movements, twitching and flinching whenever Boba moved. This was not paranoia. No this was a fear for his life and feeling trapped.

"You have your own problems." Rion suddenly said, sounding hollow. "You have grown too close to this Altharya."

Boba's right eye twitched. Too close? That was understating it slightly. Only slightly. Nothing had happened, even if he was thinking about it.

"Don't you have bigger concerns?" Boba cringed at how defensive he sounded.

Rion sighed. "It is one thing if I fucked up. Doesn't mean I shouldn't be concerned when you are about to."

"Nothing has happened." Boba replied, not as harsh as before.

"Doesn't mean it won't still." Rion countered easily. "What when you have to part ways once the bounty is over? What then?"

It would be so much more complicated when Vader wanted his bounty delivered. There were options of course. Someone disappearing was no problem. But no one could really hide from the Empire and they were his biggest employer next to the Arions.

"I can deal with it." He said in the end, biting the tip of his tongue.

It was true. After all, he had survived his father's death.

Rion only stared at him for a long while before shaking his head vehemently. But he did not broach the subject anymore. Neither did the rest of the invited hunters who started to show up one by one. The nagging feeling at the back of his mind was pushed to the side when the Imve brothers started to boast about their latest exploits.

For once it was like the old times. No tooka kitten clinging to his legs, nor a former Jedi dancing around somewhere nearby.

It felt good.

If only it did not feel like a part was missing.

The chrono showed three in the morning. Most of the people Tehra had invited were fast asleep on the dais they had all shared while watching a holo-movie. One she hadn't seen before, but according to Tehra a film classic on Drog which had been an adaptation of the Arion and Brent split

Huffing, she rubbed her nose while she stared at the dark ceiling and closed her eyes. The visuals had been stunning though. Did Lorena really have to wear those ridiculous head dresses too? Or was it merely an old tradition that had hopefully died off? Those looked so uncomfortable that even her neck had started to cramp in phantom pain.

She never wanted to be like Lorena. Never. That sounded like a nightmare to live as the walking and breathing image of government.

Breathing out, she let her hand fall to the side onto the cushion she was lying on. Apparently the Arions, or more Lorena, were going to open a butterfly sanctuary in Senya's memory soon. The announcement had come after the movie had finished, Lorena reading out a resolution that had been voted on by all Arion representatives hours before.

Senya's funeral had been a week ago where even the Brents had issued statements of condolences. Those had been torn apart in their ambassadors' faces and then sent out of the ceremony. A week of held breath waiting for the Brents response. It had been indignant and then silence dominated the relationship between the two families again.

Immediate crisis averted and their attention was put directly onto the new sanctuary. Of all things it would be butterflies. Pretty ones, larger than her face and colourful. Would their wings feel smooth or would they break as soon as her fingers would touch them?

Should she try again? What had Tehra said off-handedly to her when Zolre had mentioned one of her more famous fights. Confidence was the key.

She _could_ do it.

Skin prickling up her arms and chest, she felt the Force draw on her. Willingly taking her thoughts and form shapes at the back of her eyelids.

 _Exhale_.

Light weight settled onto her nose, tapping gently against its bridge. Air moved against her cheek, small streams of it flowing over her eyelids and temples.

As if tiny legs were moving on her face, as if wings were beating above her making the air move against her skin. Exhaling through her mouth, she heard air hitting a solid object, a quiet, deep and hollow sound. Had she finally done it? An illusion?

Would be too good to be true. Though if she opened her eyes, this illusion might be gone. Maybe she'd indulge in the feel of tiny legs on her face and the softly beating wings for a moment.

But she had to know. Had to know that the Jedi had been wrong about her. That she could use the Force.

So she opened them.

Above her were blue glistening wings. White light glowed around them as they moved slowly up and down. Grey lines threaded through the delicate wings which ended in white seams framing the wings.

Beautiful… and peaceful with how it rested on her face. Felt almost natural with how it moved.

She had done it! An illusion of her own! Cheeks strained with how widely she smiled into the darkness of the room.

If only she could tell Boba about it...Tehra was right. Whatever was going on between them – calling it feelings of the romantic sort made her gut squirm and the butterfly flutter its wings nervously – it had to stop. Was it wrong? Yes. Did it feel wrong? No. She would have to talk to him about it. If Tehra noticed it, then Boba knew what had been going on for weeks now.

Though, that was easier decided than followed through.

Standing in front of the door to the house she still had no idea what to say or whether she should even say anything. Decisions… decisions…. But if she didn't she'd regret it later. Sighing, she pushed the door open.

"Altharya?" Boba's voice rang out from the living room, sleepy and exhausted.

"Hey." She greeted and walked to where his voice had come from.

He was lying on the couch, one arm thrown across his face shielding his eyes from the glaring sun falling through the window.

"You look… dead." She cringed at her own comment and walked over to him, sitting down in the space he had left.

"You too." Boba grumbled and lifted his arm off.

She did not have the energy to laugh. For a long moment silence hung over them, pressing down on her shoulders.

"Something is on your mind." Boba stated resigned and sat up.

The space between them felt hollow, cold and she felt goosebumps rising on her arms. This was starting out well.

"Yes." She replied, swallowed and glanced over to him. "Tehra explained the rule to me."

Boba said nothing, but rubbed his face with his two hands.

"I don't know what you feel…"

Boba snorted. "You know exactly how you and I feel about this. Don't bother lying for my sake."

She winced. That was fair.

"Even if we both do." She said carefully turning to him fully. "It is not like we can do anything."

Boba quirked an eyebrow at her. "Exactly."

That was it. All that had to be said, right? They both had agreed that nothing was to happen. Still, there was so much _to_ say.

"I am sorry." She mumbled finally.

Boba looked at her intently, brown eyes flashing with something she could not quite put her finger on. It was fleeting, just out of her grasp. Then he lifted his arms, slowly almost hesitant. They settled on her shoulders, drawing her close, his arms resting comfortingly around her back.

Her own slung around his chest and her head came to a stop against his throat. It was mournful. But it was warm and it soothed the frayed nerves in her chest.

"I am sorry too." Boba muttered into her hair.


	20. Chapter 20

**AN: Hey, I think I am earlier than even I thought with the new update! Either way here it is and now we are picking up on the plot. Eight more chapters and I think that specific plot line will be concluded. Do let me know what you thought!**

 **To vos (guest):  
** Danke für die Review! Wirklich, ich habe mich so gefreut! Und ich bin schon gespannt, was du hier von hälst! Außerdem hatte ich meine Daumen für dich gedrückt. Was für ne Klausur war es denn? Und ja, die zwei stecken echt in der Klemme und es wird noch schlimmer kommen . Ohhh. Danke für die Idee! Bobas Sicht der Dinge in den ersten paar Kapiteln und dann kann ich mal zeigen wie er sich so zu sagen in sie verknallt! Danke für die Idee! Ich denke, dass ich das entweder das nächste oder übernächste davon sprechen werde. Ich freue mich schon auf deinen Kommentar für dieses Kapitel :D

* * *

"We are out of food." Boba stated letting go of her.

His shoulders had slumped, the tension that had held them up gone. He looked more at ease now than in the last few weeks.

"Completely?" She asked, rubbing her eyes that felt heavy still.

"Our freezer is empty." He pointed up, standing up to stretch his arms above his head.

"You are thinking of going to the shop now?" Groaning she draped herself over the arm rest.

Could they not?

"Yes." He deadpanned and dropped his arms to his side. "Come on, you are not that tired."

"Yes." She grumbled, but kicked out her legs so they were on the floor. "I ate too much yesterday."

"I told Tehra you liked those lemon bites."

"She told me." She replied and got up.

"Anyways, is she alive already?" He asked jokingly.

"She was staring deeply into a mug of caf when I left."

Sighing, Boba looked to the chrono. "If you want we can go and visit her once we are done with the groceries?"

"Sure." Altharya yawned. "Also, have you ever seen 'Everything and Nothing'?"

"Once." Boba raised an eyebrow at her. "Did Tehra run it yesterday?"

She nodded and followed him out into the hallway. Before he could answer, light tapping of paws on stairs were heard and a loud meow. Kihroya had run down the stairs and now sat on the third step, its tail tip swishing side to side.

"Not yet." Boba turned to face the tooka, frowning theatrically at her. "You know you are still too young!"

A very insistent meow and Kihroya puffed out its chest, the white fluff shining in the morning light. Ears were straight in the air and it stared at Boba, demanding to go with them wordlessly. She had to press her mouth into a thin line when Boba stemmed his hands into his waist and stared back. Two stubborn beings trying to outdo the other. Most days, they'd try to outdo the other. It was clear who would win, but Boba always enjoyed those little moments so she just watched.

A heartbeat later, Kihroya flatted her ears and lowered herself slightly with a low meow. The sign she yielded. For now, tomorrow they'd be at it again. Somehow Kihroya liked Boba more than her, always sitting on his chest during evenings not even sparing her a glance.

"Let's go." She prodded, opening the door. "Before the rabble descends on the shop and all the fish is gone."

"Don't let them hear you call them rabble!" Boba snorted as he turned around to followed her out. "Although, I will remember that for the next time Philip decides to be a little shit."

A few minutes on the way to the main center, Altharya felt herself finally waking up more. Her eyes were no longer heavy to keep open, nor was there any urge to yawn anymore.

"How was your evening? What did you guys do?" She asked.

They reached the first few houses where Rion stood with a crate in his hands talking to someone.

"Well, Philip made food for us." Boba recounted and waved at Rion who flinched violently, but waved back before turning back to whoever he was talking to. "We played this one game. Ever heard of: Tombs and Terentateks?"

It sounded outlandish… but she had heard of it? Maybe? Struhn had played it a few times, but said she had been too young back before they had moved to their final town.

"What is that?" She asked. "I heard about it, but Struhn never really said anything about it."

"How?" Boba's face fell, completely stunned. "It is one of the more popular games galaxy wide!"

"I heard of it, but never really played it? Or had the opportunity to."

"Oh." Boba bit his upper lip in thought. "It is a table top game, not as divisive as Sabacc though."

"That is a low bar." She laughed. "I mean, what are the rules?"

"Eh. There are no opponents in the sense that the other players are in other games. You have a world, you have a character you can skill whatever you want and then… you go on do quests."

She giggled. "Sounds a lot like bounty hunters."

Boba shot her a half-annoyed, half tempted to laugh look and shook his head. "In the very broadest sense."

"Without the risks?" She grinned back.

He sighed. "Yes. We have these get togethers once everyone is here for a while."

"Will there be another?"

"We have not talked about it yet, but I suspect in three or four days?"

"Oh, good. Tehra asked me if I was up to grab a caf or tea with her at some point."

"You can go to her whenever you want." Boba laughed. "If you go to her on that day, plan in a few hours. These sessions can stretch."

"How long did you run yesterday?"

"I think it was just under five hours?" Boba blew out a breath. "Once we ran at ten hours."

"And you held out for that long?" Altharya blinked in surprise. "I don't know… don't you get kind of sick of it?"

"You don't get too bored with it." Boba assured her. "It just doesn't happen."

They were walking past a house then where something caught her eye. Lanterns were hanging from its roof and the arches on the bottom floor. Blue, red, purple… very colourful and not lit yet. Yesterday there had been none and… looking around there were more lanterns or ones that were being hung up still."

"Oh." Boba spoke up. "The Iridescent festival is in a few months, but it is a sacred period for the Rishi and the bounty hunters were invited to participate. Which we do, just so there are no tensions between us and the Rishi representatives."

"So you need to get lanterns too?"

Boba sighed. "Yes. Completely forgot about it. Hopefully Mari has some left over and I need to ask her when the date is when it starts exactly."

"Tell me about it."

"What do you want to know?"

"What is the period for? What do we do? What does it mean?"

"The Rishi celebrate the moon phases as they happen on their homeworld Rishi. There the moon has two phases throughout the year, visible for one half and not for the other. In a myth, their moon god sleeps when it cannot be seen and in the three month period when it slowly becomes visible again, they think their god is waking up and brings rain and fertility. I think it is through his tears which bring the rain season on Rishi. Not here obviously, but they held onto that tradition. Anyhow, during the period they hang up lanterns to help wake up their god."

"So… is there anything else other than lanterns they do?"

"Once the moon is full, on that night there is a celebration or festival how they call it. But leading up to it, they had a period of fasting for people fit to do so. At the festival, at least here, they set up tables and we eat until we drop from the chairs."

"What type of food can we not eat during fast?" Altharya frowned.

"No fish, no meat and berries." Then he winked at her. "But it is not that enforced anymore. Right now, we mostly leave out any favourite treats or meals. Some even go as far and ask Mari to not order these things until after the fast period. Others take bounties away from here on 'accident'."

She chuckled and then squinted up at him. "So… that means no more caf bars for you!"

"If I have to, then you get no more lemon bites!"

"I can live without them!"

"Sure?" Boba teased, tossing her the most self-assured smirk she had ever seen.

"Want to bet on it?" She challenged.

"Let's see if you are serious about it once it starts." He waved her off.

"Hey! I am serious!"

"It is not now." He reasoned.

Altharya huffed and rolled her eyes at him good-naturedly.

Boba raised his eyebrows and then muttered. "I am too tired for this. When we get inside, see if you can grab some jam?"

"I could." She said, sticking her nose up in the air.

He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. A headache was prickling behind his forehead, worry and a sense of helplessness warring in a knot. Frowning, she rubbed her nose. There was nothing she could do to help if he did not tell her what was going on. Except medically. But it would not solve anything… Altharya looked away. Did they even have medication against headache in their kit? She would have to take stock again given that the burn and superficial wound salves have been depleted since _that_ incident.

Oh and syringes. Ever since that fiasco they had only one left over. Though, she picked at a nail that had a slight tear in it, she needed to address it regardless. One day she won't be around anymore and he should know the symptoms and how to pre-emptively treat it. Swallowing, she regarded Boba from the side who had retreated back into his silent self. It was strange to think that she would leave… so far away, but still hanging directly above her head.

The town center was livelier today, Rishii sitting on the branches of the tree above their heads hanging several more colourful lanterns up. Children were running around the trunk, yelling and jumping in glee. Was the school on break already?

"When are the lanterns lit?" She asked as they walked underneath the tall tree.

"Once you have hung them up." Boba shrugged, stopping suddenly grabbing her at her forearm.

A streak of Rishii and Twi'lek children raced past them, chasing a metal ball flying fast in front of them.

"Also, a warning for the next few weeks." He pointed as the group disappeared into a blur of different colours. "This is a popular game to play during this period. Just be careful not to step in their path."

"I can see that." She snorted and stepped closer to Boba when a Rishii whose arms were laden with lanterns bustled past her.

"And in two weeks we will have a market going on here. Several travelling merchants tour the entire system and are coming for that week to us."

"What do they sell?"

"Mosaic supplies." He explained. "Every year we get a massive storm of tourists coming just to go to this market."

"Why not set up a shop here?"

"I guess it would not be economically viable." Boba shrugged. "And the Arions fund them to travel through the entire system and sometimes in other. Also Mari is trying to expand her shop to offer some more mosaic making tools. She got the permission and now has the funds to do so."

"Oh good!" Altharya smiled. "Will you make a mosaic?"

Boba blinked in surprise. "Eh, no. I don't think so."

"Why not? They are pretty and … imagine the colours in the living room!"

"Lorena told you, didn't she?"

"Yes! She showed me some actually! Surely there must be something in your life that you want to put as a mosaic?"

Boba remained silent, sadness weighing down his eyelids and… her chest clenched. Oh… right… how could she forget? Stupid, stupid….

"There might be one." Boba then said quietly. "Maybe…" He looked up to the sky. "I think I will."

"What are you thinking of?"

"You will see." He smiled slightly.

But then apprehension flickered over his face and he looked down to look at her.

"We will get a medic here soon." He informed her.

That was good? She cocked her head to the side in confusion. That meant he'd have a steady supply point for medical things.

"I know the guy who is coming." Boba spoke again. "And I know you have been looking through my datapads."

So he had noticed. Damn… she clasped her hands together. All she wanted to look for was if he had access to medical journals or textbooks on maybe one. There had been none, only technical manuals or literature. But at least she had tried. Only, the longer she went without practice, she'd lose her confidence and skill in treating people. Yesterday she forgot a minor symptom of the Xeni-plague! Even a rare disease, they had that disease once on Teth… she should know. And she was forgetting.

What kind of medic was she?

"I was…" She started to justify herself, but Boba shook his head softly.

"I asked him to bring some of his older study material with him." Boba said, his cheeks slightly darker. "He messaged saying that he can give you some of his textbooks that update.

She stopped in her tracks, her mouth hanging open in shock. Staring at Boba who looked anywhere but her. Updating textbooks? For her? Of all things she had thought he'd say if he discovered her going through his datapads… that had not been it. Never that! Textbooks… Updating ones meant official university books! The most expensive and unattainable ones for her. Struhn had tried Force knew how many ways and never got anywhere.

She opened her mouth, but nothing came out. Words were jumbled in her head and she had to swallow before the right ones came.

"Thank you." She breathed out and could not prevent the large smile from forming.

Boba shot her a quick glance as he explained quickly. "I thought you might want to keep up to date."

Her fingers twitched towards his hand that was closest to her. But… she stopped. The rules. Remember? So she looked away towards a whole line of lanterns that now spanned from one side of the street to another. There was so much to say, but nothing could be said.

"Altharya!" Someone yelled out then.

She turned around, seeing Tehra jogging over.

"Did you forget something?" Boba asked Altharya, hands stuffed in his pockets.

"Nothing comes to mind?" She said.

Tehra arrived then, her face was bright and open. "Fett, you look like death."

"Not you too." He groaned in exasperation.

"Did you?" Tehra snorted looking at Altharya.

"Called him that first thing I arrived." Altharya informed a now loudly laughing Togruta.

"Are you two done?" Boba asked, giving them both a dark glare.

"I am." Tehra stopped laughing. "By the way, I had tea ready and I just saw you walking by…"

"We are getting food." Boba explained. "Do you want to talk to Altharya?"

"Do you want to?" Tehra asked her.

Altharya looked at the two of them. "Eh… sure?"

"Good." Boba gave her a reassuring smile. "I will come when I am done. Save me some of the tea." He gave Tehra a look.

"Don't worry, got plenty this time around." Tehra waved him off.

"See you then." Boba waved, turned around and kept walking.

Altharya's gut twinged slightly watching him walk away. Though… there was no ripple of disappointment going through his mind. Nothing to worry about then?

"Did you two talk?" Tehra's question made her turn around.

"We did."

"I wanted to talk to about something I had not the time to yesterday." Tehra explained quickly. "Something to consider."

"Is something wrong?"

"No." Tehra replied, grinning. "I wish to get to know you better."

Altharya stared at the Togruta, as warmth spread from her chest down to her toes and finger tips. Was this… maybe she'd have a friend here? Maybe she could dare to hope.

Tehra's flat had been cleaned up more when they arrived. The windows stood wide open, letting in the midday breeze in. It was blessedly cooler inside than the heat outside and Altharya sighed as soon as she stepped inside.

"Wait until we get to next month." Tehra joked. "That will be hell if you are not used to the heat."

"I lived in a town in a jungle for years." Altharya huffed. "I think I can handle it."

"Oh." Tehra winced in sympathy. "How hot did it get there?"

"It could get way over fourty standard degrees and humid."

Tehra flinched. "On my home planet, Shili, I grew up in the more Northern parts, so we rarely got high temperatures."

"So I guess the first time experiencing heat was here?"

Tehra grinned now. "Oh no. The first time, I foolishly accepted a bounty contract on Tatooine. That had been no normal heat. No! That had been skin-melting!"

"Tatooine? Where Jabba the Hutt is?"

"Yes, that slimeball."

"I heard about him." Altharya shivered slightly.

There had been one guy who had to have his arm amputated one day, screaming about the torture Jabba had inflicted on him. Ordered and watched with others laughing. Struhn had taken her aside and warned her to never ever get involved in any business a Hutt was connected to. Made her swear that she would never.

"I met him, unfortunately." Tehra sighed. "Turned in that bounty and got off that rock right after. Never took a bounty from him ever again. What he did to some there…" She shuddered, grief floating out. "I will forget that."

"Can't blame you." Altharya replied, sitting down on the chair Tehra was pointing at.

"Where did you live to even hear about his ugly side?" Tehra asked, setting down additional cups on the table.

"I lived on Teth. That town where that monastery is."

"I have been there!" Tehra exclaimed. "Well, twenty years ago. When did you move there?"

"Nine or eight years."

"Are the old Selonians around still?"

"They are! Kicking and keeping their claws sharp."

"Stars, they would bite death if they could." Tehra shook her head. "Anyhow when I came to that town that one time. I was running a bounty with a friend of mine and we made a stop at that town. First thing we did as any sane bounty hunter is look for the cantina."

Sane bounty hunter? Those existed? Altharya giggled into her tea cup.

"Laugh!" Tehra waggled her upper face markings. "This is just the beginning."

"Stars, what happened?"

"We couldn't find this stupid cantina!"

"How?!" Altharya snorted. "It is like the first building at the landing pads!"

"My friend, her name was Theopan by the way, and I had a bit of a celebration party before arriving." Tehra admitted. "And we stumbled out of this ship. I swear every building looked the same!"

"I think I heard about that." Altharya facepalmed, laughing into her hands.

"Were we that memorable?" Tehra cackled. "Did they tell you that the two Selonians decided to send us on a circle?"

"They said they drank their best wine watching you get lost." Altharya added. "They used to threaten us children they'd do the same to us if we drank too much sweet water."

"Oh they told you!" Tehra's eyes glistened.

"I mean they had the time of their lives telling us this pranks."

"Maybe! But a friend and I had a phase where we pranked them and they right back at us."

"And I used to wonder how you and Boba get along so well." Tehra commented looking up to the chrono on the wall. "What does Boba need to buy again?"

"Groceries and those lanterns." Altharya replied. "Can take a while since I am not there to carry the crate."

"The shop is going to be packed." Tehra rolled her eyes.

"As if Boba had ever trouble getting through masses of people."

"True." Tehra conceded. "How is the training going?"

"Didn't you call it murder?"

"I have not been convinced otherwise." Tehra sniffed.

"Still trying to teach me how to dodge with more hand to hand combat rolled in." Altharya said, rolling her left shoulder somewhat.

"Has he told you your options?" Tehra asked, frowning now.

"No? I mean all I was told to run and dodge once he catches up?"

Tehra released a long sigh. "Sounds like how his father trained him…." She shook her head. "Anyhow, I can give you a few pointers since he is not going to."

Advice? Altharya looked up, hope making her feel lighter than any time in her training. There were more options? Had Boba expected her to think more on what he was trying to teach her?

"Either, you do what you two are doing." Tehra held up a finger. "You get faster." Another went up. "Or, you land in a good kick."

"That is not dodging." Altharya pointed out.

"I think it lies in what he is trying to teach you." Tehra explained. "The fundamentals of bounty hunting: How to make a speedy exit. As we tend to call it."

"Running from authorities?"

"Not necessarily, but in that spirit."

"But…"

"I know who put that bounty on your." Tehra interjected, serious and tone hard. "What he is going is training you to have the ability to go on missions Vader will send you on. And the ability to run."

"I see." Altharya gripped her hair.

Of course Tehra would know.

"Boba is a brilliant bounty hunter. One of the best there is most likely. He can teach you many things… but his training was unorthodox to say the least." Tehra put a comforting hand on her hand that was gripping at a braid.

"Thought as much when he started to chase me around the house."

"No. Not like that. His father threw him straight into the job."

Her heart stopped. Thrown straight into danger?! A child?!

"How old was he?" She asked disbelievingly.

"Nine, maybe?" Tehra replied. "But most children started earlier where he grew up."

"On Kamino?"

Surprise flickered on Tehra's face. "He told you? Well, he only knows one way to train someone. You will have to diverge from that."

"What are you suggesting?"

"I could help, should you wish. Might speed your training up and we can teach you more until you have to leave." Tehra shrugged.

It felt like a genuine offer, as concern touched her cheeks and… she wanted to cry. What had she done to deserve this kindness?

"Why?" She finally asked. "You know who…"

"I know." Tehra interrupted her calmly. "You are a good kid. There is no way you will last under Vader's thumb. You _need_ to know how to escape."

Tehra threw her a long look, imploring and begging almost. Clenching her jaw, she rubbed her eyes.

"I will ask Boba." Was all she could muster.

"You shouldn't and if you do, he will say yes." Tehra replied. "He is already giving you a lot of freedom and frankly he wants you to survive. And on top of that, you both get some space to be separate from the other."

"I suppose."

"Now, where were we before this got depressing?" Tehra asked sitting back down.

"May I remind you made it so?"

"It had to be said."

"We were with escape techniques." Altharya said.

"Oh! Right… anyhow, there is kicking, punching… generally I know Boba likes to blast things out of his way or into the way, depending what he feels like…"

"Have you done bounties with him?" Altharya asked, feeling reminded of that time on Teth.

"Plenty." Tehra giggled. "But he likes telling me about them too."

"So you are saying that there are more options than rolling out of the way?"

"Exactly." Tehra held up another finger. "And you need to use everything at your disposal."

Tehra gave her a meaningful look. One that made Altharya's gut tighten into a stone and she had to swallow heavily. It was strange to have the Force acknowledged like that. Even more since it was Tehra actively encouraging her to use it while Boba still flinched away whenever it hung in the air sometimes. Or even hinted at.

"What are you suggesting?"

"You need to learn how to use the Force." Tehra stated bluntly. "It is your greatest asset. The ones you will be dealing with soon have trained in it for their whole lives."

Altharya's throat was too dry to retort anything.

"I may not be sensitive to it. But I knew a Jedi before the purge and he taught me some meditation techniques. If you want I can do them with you."

Altharya snapped her head up. Techniques? Taking a breath, she felt tears pressing against her eyes. Was this the Force hearing her pleas for guidance?

"Altharya?" Tehra asked concerned, putting a hand on her shoulder, trying to comfort her.

"I am fine." Altharya sniffed, rubbing her eyes. "I was trying to train in the Force, but…"

"You are not getting anywhere with it?" Tehra finished for her.

Altharya nodded.

"What is giving you trouble?" Tehra pushed a tiny bowl of the left over lemon bites towards her. "Eat. I cannot eat that many on my own."

"Moving things is giving me trouble." Altharya replied, taking one and popped it into her mouth. "I can…"

How to describe illusions best? Would Tehra even understand? Well… she could show her? Looking at the spot between hers and Tehra's cups, she focused on an image. A little bird she had seen around the village for a while now.

A chirp and a flutter of feathers and there sat a tiny bird on the edge of her cup. Beak ruffling its feathers.

Tehra jumped, shrieking in surprise.

"You can do that?" Tehra held a hand in front of her mouth.

Altharya shrugged. "Only managed to do it for the first time yesterday."

Tehra said nothing, completely surprised she stared as the bird shuffled on the tea cup, its tiny talons clinking against the material.

"Have you…" Tehra then frowned, pursed her lips. "If you can do that… have you been going invisible around people?"

"Unconsciously." Altharya admitted uncomfortably. "Emmett and Rion. Boba had some trouble explaining to them that I had been around."

"Rion?" Tehra was surprised, eyes wide. "Him?"

"Mind explaining?"

"I think you know that you going invisible means that you perceive them as threats."

"Yes. But Rion… he has been acting weird."

Tehra sighed. "He is normally not that way. Something happened and we are all concerned. Not that surprised with Emmet, he was transferred so quickly from a busier spot to this one, it was a bit suspicious."

"So…" Altharya started.

"But going invisible will help you in escaping. Illusions…" Tehra cocked her head to the side. "Have you tried making an illusion of yourself?"

"No." Altharya shook her head. "I suppose if I can it would be good to have as a distraction."

"Yes…" Tehra leaned back in her chair, hand on her chin thinking. "Either way, do not worry about Rion. He would never do anything… drastic."

"Not really reassuring." Altharya commented.

"I know him." Tehra said, making a dismissive hand wave. "But if you perceive him as a threat then." Worry lined her facial markings. "Oh Rion, what did you get yourself into?"

"I don't know." Altharya muttered.

"I can only hope he will talk to one of us one day or sort it out himself." Tehra shook her head. "Anyways, Boba should be here already."

How long have they been talking? Altharya looked up to the chrono. More than an hour already? Was the shop so crowded that he needed way more time than normal?

"Should we go to the shop?" She asked.

The air shifted. No longer comfortably warm, but freezing cold and a howl roared in her ears. Bile pushed into her nose and she coughed.

"Something wrong?" Tehra frowned at her, standing up to rub her back.

"I sensed something." Altharya wheezed. "It just happened or is going to."

For a moment, Tehra said nothing.

"We are going to Boba." She commanded. "He needs to know."

"What is he going to do about it?" Altharya asked, but Tehra was already pulling her out of the chair.

"If you sense something about to happen, our best bet is to be with him." Tehra explained, already marching to the door leading to the cantina.

"Wouldn't it make more sense to stay here?" Altharya asked, but ran after Tehra's long strides.

"No." Tehra argued as they rushed out into the open street. "If something is going to happen here, it has to do with the Brents."

"But…"

Tehra hurried around the corner and Altharya had to run to catch up.

"Fett!" Tehra's call was all she heard when she rounded the corner.

There he was, at the entrance of the shop. Crate in his arm, talking to Philip who was laughing at something Boba had said.

Both turned around, confusion flickering between them… her eyes shifted to the middle of the street where a speeder shot past her. Some loose hair flew into her eyes.

Time slowed down… a wail in her ears. She turned her head. Rion in the middle of the street. Frozen in place, eyes blown wide as he stared at the approaching speeder. There was no way the speeder could break or stop in time. Nor any time for Rion to react.

Her hand shot out. Searing pain shot up to her elbows and she had to bite back a scream.

She did not hear the impact, the sound drowned out by utter silence as she stared horrified as it rammed Rion and his speeder. A hole opened up in her chest and she closed her eyes. Heat washed over her face and Tehra's hand was gripping her, pushing her down.

Breathe in… breathe out.

Yells were the first thing she heard. Tehra's hand was still gripping her as she opened her eyes. In the middle of the street leading to the lake's bank were the smoldering remains of the two speeders. No way that either of them survived.

But... the other person on the speeder… they had a higher chance than Rion. If they did…

She ran over, calls of her name following her steps.

Scraps of metal were strewn across the ground, smoke rising from some. Most were twisted, black and she jumped over a charred steering console. Skidding to a halt, she stopped herself. A detached arm was in front of her, skin black and fingers missing. Both speeders were too wrecked for the other to be alive.

"Altharya!" Boba's horrified yell made her flinch.

She felt herself deflating, knees buckling. Both dead… and she had not been strong enough to stop the speeder…. Breathing out harshly, she forced herself to stand straighter. Later.

What were the protocols again on the galactic standard on death certificates again…? Exhaling she looked around the wreckage. The bodies need to be recovered and site needed to be secured.

"What are you doing?" Boba yelled right into her ear and she jerked away.

Good question. She did not know either.

"I need something to cover the bodies." She said instead. "I need some forms for death certificates…"

"I am calling the authorities." Tehra's voice piped up and Altharya felt herself nodding.

Authorities were good. But she had enough training and credit points that she could fill in a provisional certificates and… she looked to where she sensed more people approaching. Rishi and other bounty hunters.

"Altharya, stop." Boba begged. "You are no medic, only certified medics can sign death certificates."

She finally looked at him.

He looked miserable. Eyes were blood shot and his mouth was twitching. As if he was trying to decide what to show and what to feel. His hand was on her shoulder, gripping down hard and she could feel his fingers right down to her bone.

"Go sit down." She murmured to him. "I have this under control."

He stared at her. Confused and lost and then his hand on her shoulder started to shiver.

"Rion?" He asked quietly.

She shook her head. "Go."

"No." He said firmer now. "What can I do?"

He was being stubborn now. No point trying to argue against him even if she could pull the medic card.

"I need something to cover the bodies and move some parts in case a speeder explodes." She repeated again. "I need gloves."

"Alright." Then he was gone.

Murmurs were heard, Tehra's conversation with the operator on her com finally reaching her ears. Looked like she needed help to move the rubble around to collect the limbs. Not a pretty end to have. Would it even be… she frowned and squatted down. She might not know how speeders work… but this panel… no way the accident had twisted it that way. If only she knew what it belonged to. Glancing over to where Boba was walking towards Philip who was standing in front of Mari, she saw Tehra getting off the com and walking over to her.

"What do you see?" Tehra asked.

"Do you see these parts?" Altharya pointed at the panel. "Looks strange for being impacted from the opposite side."

Tehra hummed in thought. "No. These are the engine panels. They are twisted that way because the driver parts are sturdier so they crumbled into the engine and the explosion did the rest."

"I see." Altharya replied. "Do you have any securing tapes?"

"No." Tehra shook her head. "What needs to be done?"

"Securing the site. I need gloves and collect the bodies."

"Assuming two?"

"We will know once we have the limbs."

"Alright. The authorities say they need a few minutes before arriving."

"Where are they coming from?"

"The nearby town."

"I suppose this will be investigated?" Altharya asked.

"Definitely." Tehra replied. "If an accident this will be filed away…"

"If not?"

"Then we have a problem. We might have to move to a different town." Tehra replied, already looking defeated.

"How does that work?"

"Rehousing homes and businesses. The Arions do not hesitate long when it comes to that."

Boba returned then, a box of gloves in his hands.

"Here." He said. "Tehra, the Rishi council representative wishes to have a talk with you."

"Of course they do." Tehra grumbled and got up. "I trust you can handle this until the authorities arrive?"

"Yes, Tehra." Boba sighed and Tehra left, walking to a highly decorated Rishi who tucked their wings in as if he had just flown over.

"Is she a representative?" She asked.

"Unofficially yes." Boba explained, handing her the gloves.

"Thank you."

"Do you just need to collect the bodies?"

"Body parts." She grumbled and picked up the arm to place it carefully onto a sheet Philip had spread on the ground. "I have no scanner so I cannot assign what part belongs to who."

"Can you do that?" Philip asked. "Just move the bodies?"

"We are not tampering with the wreckage until they have documented it." Altharya shrugged. "But we can remove any parts lying around so no one steps on them."

"Fair."

For minutes, Altharya moved another arm, charcoal remains of fingers and … she sighed sadly. A piece of a skull. This was not pretty and she saw others shooing children and spectators away. The authorities arrived in a shuttle, several black uniformed officers and three who were in white lab coats.

"We can take it from there." The oldest looking of the three said, waving her off.

Boba practically pulled her away, towards the officers who looked like they wanted to be anywhere but here.

"Let's get the statements over with." He explained numbly.

"Are you alright?" She tugged on his elbow.

But he did not slow down. Did not answer. Only dead set on getting them both to the officers who had datapads out and were already talking to Philip.

"Stop." She pulled hard now, digging her heels into the ground.

Finally he stopped and turned around.

"I am fine." He answered.

"No you are not."

His shoulders fell and for once he looked small. He rubbed his forehead.

"I will tell you later."

"We do not have to make a statement right now." She suggested, not letting go of his elbow yet.

Sometimes a patient needed to be held back even when they were calming down from their mad rush to get somewhere. An old trick, one that had always worked.

"What point is there in delaying?" He asked, then looked down where she was clutching him.

"You need a moment to breathe."

He smiled sadly and grabbed her hand that was on his elbow. "We can breathe later."

"There…"

"Sir, Ma'am. We need your statements." An officer interrupted them.

She groaned. Of course they'd come to them right that moment! Boba already turned away from her and her hand fell off.

"We need your names, contact details…" The officer started to rattle off ignoring the death glare she was sending their way.

* * *

"Is he dead?" the hologram flickered in front of his eyes.

He sighed. "Yes. And the other one too."

"The one he talked to?"

"Yes. As far as I know the authorities are ruling it as an accident and the funerals will be held next week."

"Good." The woman replied smugly. "We need this village as our staging point. Do not let these leaks happen again!"

"You can count on me."

"Good, you know what will happen if I hear about another. Also since Fett moved back, we need to move the stash further into the forest. Is the stronghold ready?"

"Not quite yet." He answered, swallowing down the dry taste in his throat. "Transferring the supplies and keep the books clean is hard in such a small village. These things take time."

"Hurry it up." She ordered, drawing herself to her full height. "We cannot have Fett on our trail!"

"Fett is too busy with his friend."

"Friend?" She raised a pixelated eyebrow.

"Turned up one day without warning and he is training her I think."

"Training her? Is he getting a partner?"

"I cannot say. My job does prevent me from interacting too much with him."

"Have you seen her?"

"She is elusive." He admitted. "Any orders regarding her?"

"No." She frowned. "But if he is getting a partner he might be gearing up for a big job."

"Big job? Bigger than the ones…" he stopped himself.

If Fett was gearing up for a truly huge job… he swallowed. Given the recent political developments between the Brents and Arions… were the Arions this gutsy to openly prepare their biggest asset?

"Keep an eye on them and if you suspect something, kill the friend."

"As you command."

"Good."

The hologram fizzled out leaving him in his dark office. Sighing, he looked out the window. Where the lanterns colourful shimmer fell through. Just outside was the street where the accident had happened. Rion should not have twitched. Now he had more work to do and keep an eye on a girl that looked like nothing.

Would be a pity to kill her. Fett seemed invested in her and he liked the kid… but orders were orders. He had to obey.


	21. Chapter 21

**AN: Hey! Uhm, I have no idea when I uploaded last but I worked on this around job applications. Watch me get rejected because my degrees are not German . Also I developed a new editing technique and I think the text flows a bit better now.**

 **Either way I got a few reviews on last chapter and believe me I squealed when I got them.**

 **Love Fiction 2019** : Thank you!

 **Arctech** : Aw thank you and welcome! Hope you will continue to enjoy this and I look forward to seeing your thoughts on the chapters to come :)

 **Guest** : I am glad you loved this and that you think that it would be a decent plot for a novel. I do hope that you will like the later plot points, first time a lot is taking place in the background and I have to pick and show what the protags can see. Hope I can read your thoughts on the next chapter!

 **vos (guest)** : Ich kann wirklich nicht beschreiben wie froh ich bin deine Kommentare zu lesen :D Kann dir jetzt schon sagen, dass die Familien Fehde schon was damit zu tun hat. Es wird noch viel wichtiger werden, aber nicht für ne ganze Weile. Aber ich lasse dich mal ein bisschen weiter rätseln :P Nächstes Chapter kommt noch was heftigeres. Ja von Al kann er gern gedrückt werden, ich bin nur zu grausam das zu zulassen xD Oh je vader wird sich mal melden, aber nicht wie wir denken. Rion war sehr tief in der Scheiße, und das mit der Familien fehde. Bin noch nicht ganz sicher wie das auffliegt, aber ich bin dran! Ich denke, dass ein Teil von einer Anpassung auch die Phase der Verleugnung dazu gehört. Ich hoffe, du hast die kleine Referenz zu den Klon Krieg Episode bemerkt am Anfang :D

Hab mir mal Hofmannsthal angeschaut... oohhh boi... Mein Beileid. Hast du das Ergebnis schon bekommen? Aber ich bin nur eine abgeschlossene Physikstudentin, ich habe so was von keine Ahnung XD Tehra wird noch eine größere Rolle spielen. Ist eine erfahrerene Kopfgeldjägerin, die aufgehört hatte. Ihre Ansicht der Dinge ist immer anders als das von Al and Boba. Also diese Risßenkommis sind die, dich mich anspornen schneller zu schreiben! Ich denke, dass ich Boba's Perspektive zum Schluss schreibe.

 **Either way, this is a little breather before next chapter which will have major things happen. Do let me know what you think in the reviews! I live of them these days.**

* * *

An accident? How…? Altharya stared at Tehra who let out a long and exhausted sigh. Numbness settled on her shoulder blades as Boba stiffened next to her. The report on the accident had been released barely an hour ago on the morning Rion and Lireth, the other one, were set to be buried. Couldn't have happened at a worse time…. That had been no accident. Not when a shadow was looming over them, encroaching on her dreams. Almost like someone was watching her.

How had the authorities not found a single shred of evidence of foul play? Especially this quickly! It had only been a week. She wanted to shake her head, but shock froze up her muscles and she merely blinked at the glowing words on the datapad.

"No." Boba cut into their silence furiously, his hands balled into fists where they lay on the table. "No! That is…" He stopped, his nostrils flared as anger bubbled in his chest brightly trying to burst forth.

She winced.

"Boba." Tehra interjected softly, stretching out her hand to put it on top of his fists.

He jerked back at the touch, teeth bared. "We saw what happened! How can they…" – releasing a furious huff, he pinched the bridge of his nose and spat bitterly – "Why?"

Tehra shot her a pleading look, but what was she to say? The same thing the report said? All their justifications said out loud? That felt too cruel in this moment.

"There had been no evidence of tampering." Tehra muttered, grabbing his wrist securely.

In case he wanted to bolt. With how tense he was and his muscles were twitching underneath, he was contemplating it. Not that she could blame him. Then he took a long and deep breath, the tension lessened only a little.

"Should have looked harder." He retorted coldly, keeping unnaturally still.

"What could they have looked at if most was evaporated or burned beyond useful?" Tehra argued insistently.

How could Tehra remain this calm? Somehow Altharya envied the cool calmness the Togruta exuded now. But if it was what kept Boba from bolting, she wouldn't complain.

"The fact that most was evaporated? That most was conveniently destroyed beyond being looked at?"

Altharya rubbed her forehead where a headache was building up with her elbows on the table they were sitting around. That was not how she had imagined this visit to Tehra would go. Some quiet and space to breathe, not anger at a report that was finished that very moment. Now their nerves were strung tight… not to think about the others who will come to the funeral as well. A gathering of tense bounty hunters could not end well. At worst it would end in a catastrophe.

"Don't you think I agree with you?" Tehra's tone was stern and sharp as glass. "And you know as well as I do that without official sanction our hands are tied!"

"What?" She finally had found her voice again, looking at the two confused.

Both looked anywhere but at her for a moment. Until they exchanged dark knowing looks simultaneously.

"If it had been ruled as anything but murder" – Tehra then spoke cautiously – "Procedures would have demanded our relocation and that we find the perpetrators and deliver them to the Arion courts."

"Why make you find them?"

"We are granted some autonomy in security matters in these towns. If anything happens, it is very clearly defined as a failure of our diligence. It would be our punishment on top of the relocation."

"So why can't you act without evidence? Seems like you are given some sort of leeway?"

"Autonomy does not exclude us from their laws." Tehra shook her head. "Without evidence of foul play, we have no grounds to go on. Except when another incidence occurs."

"Not entirely true." Boba relaxed his fists finally. "Because of this autonomy we can go and look for ourselves."

"And have the Arions suspect that we know something we have not disclosed?" Tehra snarled. "Do you want us to immediately lose this place?!"

"No!" Boba fired back. "I just…"

"Want justice?" Tehra gave out an ugly laugh. "Last time you did that…"

"Innocent people died. I know!" Boba's voice had dropped so low and cold that Altharya leaned away from him as far as she could in her seat. "Don't you think I was punished enough for that?"

What had he done? She watched as his face drained, exhaustion and guilt carving his eyes and cheeks in. Revenge for his father? For who else?

"Boba" – Tehra pleaded desperately now – "I do not want you to…"

"Make the same mistake?"

"I want you to sit down and think!"

"What did you do?" Altharya asked, making the two jerk around to face her.

"What?" Boba frowned at her.

"Who did you kill to get revenge?" She asked, fixing him in place with how hard she was staring him down.

His eyes widened, grew distant and then flashed angrily. "Tried to kill the Jetii who had killed my father and left me in a warzone." – She had swallow heavily at the hatred that dripped from every word. – "I snuck on his warship and killed soldiers on my way to him. Never got to him in the end. Was caught and thrown in prison. As a _thirteen_ year old."

Her mouth dropped open in shock. So young? How had he managed to sneak on one of the heavily fortified ships? How had no one noticed a kid walking around that killed fully grown and trained soldiers? Somehow… it didn't fit in her head.

"Threw him into a prison for war criminal" – Tehra continued, rubbing circles in her temples – "Should have never been in one, but the courts…"

"It was not the courts." Boba interrupted quickly. "The Senate convicted me. Did not matter that I was a minor."

Injustice… she looked down to where her hands were clasped tightly together, her finger tips digging into the spaces between her knuckles. Why would they condemn a minor to military prison? Even with the severity of the crime… stars, she should have paid more attention to the legislature classes in the temple.

"How did you get out?" She asked quietly.

Boba clenched and unclenched his jaw, before his face fell and lost its sharp edges. "Jail break. Took the opportunity and hid."

"I got him off planet." Tehra then said.

"You already knew each other?" Altharya looked at them surprised.

Tehra seemed to have aged for decades in that moment, dark circles underneath her eyes. "I owed his father. Was my way to repay him."

She mouthed an 'oh', not quite sure who to look at. How had the Republic allowed itself to sentence a child to an adult war crime prison? The Jedi should have intervened. Hadn't they preached to them early on, as far back as she could remember, that one had to show compassion in the face of retaliation? Had they all forgotten and had to die because of that? Maybe it was best to forget them.

"Something has to be done." Boba determined into the heavy silence. "Or it will happen again."

"Are you sure?" Tehra leaned back, fingers tapping hard on the table.

He was right. Deep down she knew it was true. Something was tugging at her mind telling her that worse was coming. Ice coated the back of her neck, sending small spiky veins down to her bones.

"I can sense it." She heard herself saying. "More will happen that is connected."

Tehra deflated, hand gripping the groove between her montrals just as Boba pinched his mouth so hard, it disappeared. Even now he did not like her talking about the Force. Sometimes he would not even react at all when she merely mentioned what she sensed. Why she was trying still was beyond her. Still, the Force was a large part of who she was. She couldn't just push it away forever.

"Then" – Tehra lifted her head, sending her a tentative smile – "we need to be more vigilant. If you sense anything more, tell us."

Boba did not twitch a muscle. Did not even look at her, as if he was not listening to any word they were saying. That conversation was a time bomb ticking away and neither of them wanted to defuse it. Hopefully it would not obliterate everything when it did.

"Of course." She nodded at Tehra, her head impossibly heavy. "When should we get moving?"

"The funeral is not for an hour still." Boba said slightly annoyed.

Tehra was already rising from her chair when she stopped in surprise. "You do not want to meet with the others?"

"Feels too early." Boba muttered making no movement to get up.

"Everything is too early." Tehra sighed. "And you will need time to send him off."

To this Boba said nothing. More jaw clenching and looking down on his hands on the table. Everything was too early… that was too true. Farewells were never easy and… she felt her nose closing up, she still had to say hers to Soren. She had forgotten to do this… and shame stabbed her chest every time it crossed her mind.

How could she have forgotten him? The shame she felt was forced, like a duty she bore around. He had been her friend! Her only friend after she had lost everyone. Even if he had tried to kill her. That friendship had to count for something…. At least just enough for her to forgive and give him a send-off. Light a small statue that had showed something they had loved, set it on fire and let it float in a body of water. While forgiving and wishing their spirit eternal rest. Soren had once told her about certain figures in his people's culture that were forbidden from having these send-offs. Or it took years for someone to forgive and let go.

Maybe it was time for her to do so? After the funeral maybe? Tehra's face changed then, focused on her all the while sad and tired. Understanding swam around her. _She knew_.

"Come on" – Altharya muttered to Boba, getting up as well – "The sooner you do this the better."

"Not you too." Boba groaned, then with a defeated crinkle of his nose. "Fine…"

Slowly he got up, stretching his back with cracks audibly in several places. For a week now he had been too tense. Cramped muscles and constant headache. Nothing she could do… except wait. Medicines only got one so far before it became an addiction. Tehra got up as well then, grabbing the bag she had hanging on her chair. Silver ornaments that hung around her lekku and montrals glittered as she moved.

Sighing, Altharya followed them outside. The entire town would be present from what Tehra had said. Both Rishii and bounty hunters would be there. Lanterns were hooded with grey cloth, white flowers littered the street as black capes and scarves fluttered in the wind. Her own clothes were held black and grey as requested. No one talked, no children dared to laugh. Only silence reigned over the streets. A mute helplessness drowning out any loud noises.

It would be in a small bay that the lake had carved into the mountain side. A part she had been told was popular for the Rishii to play in this time of the year. The waterfall was far enough away to not have developed a merciless current yet, but still there was a barrier where the lake turned into a river. Now it'd have Rion's and Lireth's ashes sprinkled into it which will be swept down into the valley.

No one from their families would be present. Rion had no one anyone had been aware of while Lireth's mother had started to laugh at the news according to Tehra. It was sad… but at least an entire town turned up to pay their respects. To not be mourned in death? Seemed so… lonely. As if one had never existed.

There was already a crowd where the bay went into the water. Bounty hunters formed a circle around a platform above the water that held two urns. Three Rishii stood behind them, decked in strings of beads and antlers on top of their heads. Their yellow eyes scanned over each gathered head. Ones that were lowered in a cloud of grief and questions.

Questions that burned in some, while it simmered in others eating away. It prickled at her skin, the hair on her neck stood on end and she slowed in her steps. They all seemed to suspect foul play as well. As soon as they reached the crest of a small hill that had a path leading down to the platform, Boba leaned down right next to her ear. "You can stay here. We will not be long."

"Will you be alright?" She asked as quietly as she could.

"I will be." He squeezed her shoulder in some sort of comfort. "See you in a bit."

She nodded and he tilted his head slightly, sending her a strained smile. Then he walked down the hill, armour polished and the black cape swinging with each step. Had spent hours before they had left for Tehra cleaning and smearing armour oil into the clasps and junctions.

"What do you sense?" Tehra asked quietly as she pretended to adjust one of her ornaments.

"Questions… Grief" – Altharya squinted her eyes against the blinding sun light that was reflected from the lake as the sun now peeked through a cloud – "I fear those are the same questions we are asking."

"Figured." Tehra muttered. "Wait here. Down there is the immediate circle Rion and Lireth had. See what you can sense."

With that she left her standing on the hill, stopping next to Boba who held his helmet against his hip.

See what she could sense…. Easier said than done, it was all a giant mist of grief that obscured most of the other emotions and thoughts. Crossing her arms, she watched the backs that were turned to her. More questions… more grief…

Relief? What? Frowning slightly she tried to locate where it was coming from. But its light beating vanished within her next exhale. Clamped down underneath all the other emotions. Definitely had been there. So they had been right. But why? Why Rion? What had happened? Had he known something he should not have? Or done something? There were too many questions and no answers in sight.

A stone settled into her gut. If this was anything to go by. The chill that chased away the warmth of summer…. More was lurking underneath the surface. More 'accidents'. More deaths with how hollow her chest suddenly felt.

Silence weighed heavily on her lungs when the Rishii with the tallest antlers stepped forward, their beads shimmered blue and their feather had a purple tint. What was said or if anything was said at all she did not hear anything. But she felt a sense of comfort falling on the people around her, like a soothing blanket almost.

For a long while nothing else happened. The wind had stopped. Nothing moved as if time was held in stasis. Her finger tips prickled making them twitch as pent up energy fled into them. Then with a stuttering start the wind started again.

In that moment, another Rishii with green beads stepped forward. They spread their wings and flapped once and lifted off gracefully. Claws wrapped around the urns and they soared over the lake, grey trails falling down behind them. It was over. Not what she had expected. But it fit the town and its people. Quiet and without much ceremony. It fit almost painfully so.

Maybe she could have this send-off? Tehra was not right… the only way to escape the Empire's and Sith's grasp was to die. No running or hiding would change that.

She only hoped that it would be quick. There was still time to make peace with herself until then. If only she could tell anyone… or even have the chance to say goodbye to Struhn and maybe Renstan. Would be nice to see them again. One last time and the first time together after so long.

People below her started to disperse, heads still lowered and the spaces in between larger than a universe. Standing on her tip toes she tried to see where Boba and Tehra were, the moving mass had obscured them.

Emmet was talking to them. Stars… hopefully she did not go invisible around him again. Slowly she skidded down the hill, making her way to them through the oncoming people. Worms crawled beneath her skin the closer she drew. Now was not the time! Gritting her teeth, she forced the feeling down.

"Al" – Boba shifted to her as soon as he noticed her approach – "Emmet has organised a small gathering to remember Lerith and Rion."

"I will be hosting it at my house." Emmet added cordially.

His tone was like oil coating water sending shudders up her spine. Digging her fingers into her sleeves, she forced a smile. The less he suspected her the better.

"Do you want to go?" She asked Boba who sighed in response.

"It is customary to celebrate a dead one's life. Rememberance."

"Alright." She looked at Tehra.

"I am going." Tehra had a closed off look on her face.

"Will come too." Boba rubbed the back of his neck. "I need to sort out a few things before I do though."

"Is fine by me." Emmet shrugged. "This will go on for a long time."

"Figured." Boba huffed. "Would be surprised if they are all still around at midnight."

Emmet rolled his eyes and was already turning when he said: "See you then."

Hands in pocket, shoulders hunched forward and mind blank. Strange, but before she could say anything Boba's exasperated sigh made her turn around.

Boba shook his head. "More like a pity gathering for all bounty hunters since we were all reminded that we all die early."

Tehra shot him an annoyed look, but said nothing.

"Do you think you will?" Altharya shot at him with her chin raised.

"It is the life I have always known." Boba shrugged her off, bitterness now lying in her mouth. "I need space, Al, Tehra."

With that he stomped off, away from them and not in the direction Emmet had left in. Leaving Tehra and her standing near where the water now crashed against the rocks violently.

"He will come around. Give him a bit." Tehra sighed, shaking her head now as well.

"Did not sound like something he would put away easily." Altharya commented staring at Boba's retreating back.

"Wouldn't expect it to." Tehra shifted on her feet. "It is this time of the year again."

Altharya gave her a quizzical look.

"His father's death anniversary."

"Oh." Altharya shivered. "That…"

"He rarely ever talks about it, so you couldn't have known." Tehra re-adjusted her bag strap over her shoulder. "Best not to bother him until he approaches you. Either way" – Tehra's tone had gained sharp edges – "Did you sense anything?"

"Lots of questions, grief" – Altharya swallowed before continuing quietly – "There was relief."

"Relief?" Tehra's eyes had darkened as she muttered to herself. "Not good… not good at all."

"What do we do now?"

"For now? Observe and then we move."

"Patience was never something I excelled in." Altharya snorted derisively.

"It's a taught trait." Tehra briefly patted her shoulder. "There are situations where it is called for and in some where it is detrimental. We have no idea what is truly going on and us busting through a wall with our heads will do no one any good."

"I sense more will happen."

"We can keep an eye out for it." Tehra breathed sharply through her teeth. "Without much proof we cannot move."

"I could…"

"Not today." Tehra faced her with a cold critical look. "Remember who you lost, you might not get another chance to."

Altharya frowned at the Togruta who gave her a reluctant sad smile. Then it dawned on her. Today eleven years ago was when the Jedi Purge had begun. When white-armoured men had stormed the temple and had mowed everything down that moved. What was the point to remind her? Her tongue was now stuck to the roof of her dry mouth. Forgetting was the only way. She had nearly forgotten and could have moved on finally!

What was the point?

"I know when someone is forgetting what they lost." Tehra's words were hard and cold as steel. "If you truly wish to survive this galaxy: Remember and Learn."

Before Altharya could ask more, Tehra waved and started to walk away leaving no room for any questions. Alone on the crest of the hill, Altharya released a breath that had pent up inside. What now? All directions were open to her.

Remember and learn…. What was there to learn? Learn to never use the Force? Learn to hide better? Why was it so hard to speak plainly? What good would it do for her to remember? Struhn had warned her that remembering could mean losing oneself in hatred. Who was left to be avenged? The Jedi were gone, the Republic was gone! Soren was gone too because of her.

Probably not what Tehra meant. The water paused mid-wave when she breathed in and then hit the rock with her frustrated exhale. Fine! Why give her cryptic messages that could easily misinterpreted from what was actually meant? If she didn't know any better Tehra could have easily be one of the Jedi Masters. Everything happened for a reason and everything was connected….

Wait. A little whisper tugged at the back of her mind. Connected for a reason? What? That made no sense and surely not what Tehra had meant. She wanted to tear her hair out. Should she remember the smell of death in the corners of Coruscant? The screams that had stuck in her head for weeks? Nothing in any of them to learn from.

And how was it connected to Soren? His reasons had been clear: Save her from Vader by killing her. Might have been for the best if he hadn't hesitated. But he could have brought her to the rebellion? Why take the most extreme route? Why was she regarded as so valuable to the Sith and dangerous to the Rebellion? Was this what Tehra had meant? Or why the Jedi were gone?

Why wouldn't the rebellion want a former Jedi? From what Struhn had told her it was struggling to keep support steady. Soren could have just taken her there! If he had wanted her to live…. After all she had been his friend first and foremost. Right? Even with his distrust and disgust towards the Jedi… had that been the reason? His hatred overriding any other options so she would not become what Vader would want her to be? Or have her become something else he would still hate? Oh Soren… what had he been thinking?

Learn… what was there to learn? That any friendship could be burned to ashes? Any type of bond? Was that why the Jedi had to die? The men that had fought with them in a war must have had a reason! A big one. One no one had seen coming.

Would she ever know? No. So why bother?

But Struhn had always told her that one had to learn from mistakes, lest they be repeated. The Jedi had done a lot of mistakes… too many and ones she was slowly learning. Were they why Struhn had been tight-lipped about them? Should she have demanded answers? Instead she had been patient, or complacent? Was this what she was supposed to learn? To demand answers in the face of silence?

Was she to hate Soren? No… that would be learning nothing. She might never understand his reasons, but she could try and empathise. Never hate…. Never Soren. Maybe it was time to do what she had forgotten to do: give him a send-off he deserved as her friend. Even if it would be rudimentary given she had to weave a small object that she associated with him. The body of water would be no problem… could she use the reeds that grew near where Boba's house was?

Her feet took her down the now empty streets, solemn spaces opening up left and right. Her own mind was blank, blissfully so. The reeds were easy to break when she arrived at the spot she had discovered one day. Easy to bend and shape into a tiny boat too… something Soren used to dream about. Just a water ship he could use to sail across any ocean. By then the wind had subsided where she was.

How often had they woven these small boats in their free afternoons and thrown them down a river in the valley? This one was not as sturdy, but it would hold until it was burned completely. Carefully she placed it down into a shallower part of the lake. It bopped up and down while she held her hand over it.

She hadn't gotten that far in her planning. Making fire with the Force? Though, she pursed her lips, oxygen was around and… all she needed was a spark. Friction and the reeds were flammable still at the top. How could she hope to do that if she even struggled to move one leaf? Maybe one try? Waving her hand rapidly over the boat, she waited holding her breath.

Nothing happened and she got up, wading in to grab the object.

A trail of smoke burst forth, bright orange flame shooting up behind it. The reeds crackled. She had done it? If so… she tentatively moved her wrist sending the boat floating forward.

She did do it…. More ashes to add, but every end had a beginning.

Light feathers brushed against her cheeks. Someone cleared their throat behind. Turning around she saw Boba standing there, less tense with his grief only hovering above his shoulders fleeing away.

"Hey." She called out moving out of the water.

"What were you doing?" He tilted his head in curiosity, staring at the small smoke trail.

"Saying farewell."

"To whom?"

"A friend." She found herself smiling, turning around to look after the small boat that was fully engulfed in flames now. "His people say their farewells to their dead in this way."

Boba hummed before asking. "When did he die?"

"You killed him on Teth." She muttered, drawing her shoulders inwards.

"The one who tried to kill you?" Boba frowned down at her.

"Yes."

"Why are you grieving over him?"

"He had been my friend once. Even if he tried to kill me, but that is the point of forgiveness."

For a long moment Boba said nothing, watching with her when the boat started to spin rapidly in one place.

"Altharya" – Boba then started full of hesitation – "Do you want to know how I found you?"

She nodded, not looking at him.

"When I was first given the bounty, I already knew that he worked for the Rebellion and hated the Jedi just as much as I do… did. I let your name slip to him… thought he'd tell someone in the Rebellion and they'd mount a rescue and all I had to do was to follow. Never thought he'd grab his ship and a few others."

"He didn't want me to become what he hated. His way of caring about me I suppose? Can't blame him for that." Altharya shrugged.

"People were murdered for less." Boba muttered.

She raised an eyebrow at him and he huffed a quick laugh.

"Might not be the best person to talk." He conceded.

"What now? This was clearly not an accident."

"Observe." Boba replied slowly. "Whoever it was will be lying low for now. If we do anything, they will know and either run or move against us."

"Then more will happen." Even her own voice sounded so hollow.

"It always does." Boba wrapped an around her shoulder, placing his head on top of hers. "Nothing is ever truly over."


	22. Chapter 22

**AN: I have nothing to say for myself. I am sorry for the delay since I had to do radiation protection training and it was exhausting. Also a fair warning. I have a job interview next week and should I get it, the updates are going to be more drawn out. Also thank you for the reviews! Pretty much kept me going through the three times I had to edit this chapter. While this may seem a bit too much action followed on top of another, the next few chapters will be quieter. Promise!**

vos: _Ich hoffe, dass dein Essay gut gelaufen (hast du die Note von der Klausur schon?) ist und bin froh, dass das letzte Kapitel dir so gefallen hat! Mit der Beerdigung dachte ich, dass ich gewisse Abschlüsse machen könnte. Vor allem bei Al, da sie ja jetzt ein komplett andered Leben aufgedrückt bekommt. Und die Moralität zwischen Töten und Verteidigung. Was nicht wirklich so durch kam denke ich. Ich hab die Episode erst später gesehen, nachdem mir alle in der Schule vorgeheult haben, dass es so tragisch war._

 _Alle waren blind und mussten es einstecken. Sehr sehr traurig. Da ja jetzt die Trailer für S8 raus kam, was denkst du darüber? Ich bin nur froh, dass Ahsoka wieder da ist! Nur wegen ihr bin ich eigentlich in diesem fandom! Ich habe drei von den Monstern jetzt und das meiste kommt vom Alltag mit denen! xD und wer kann schon einer süßen Katze widerstehen :P Ich musste ein Training machen für Strahlenschutz und jetzt habe ich ein INTERVIEW nächste Woche. So was von aufgeregt!_

 _Ja er ist anhänglich geworden, weil a) verloren genauso wie Al und b) es sind nur halt jetzt nur er, Al und Tehra mit denen er groß was zu tun hat._

 _Hoffe dein Kopfkino explodiert bei der letzten Szene :P_

* * *

Fifty pull ups on a bar before Altharya knew she'd be turned into a punching bag against Boba for hours. After four months they had eased into other routines, more advanced techniques. But he still hammered her in the basics. Sweat was running down her back in streams at the thirtieth. A desperate drilling, every single hesitation or flaw mercilessly pointed out and repeated until it flowed to his satisfaction. Though – she gritted her teeth together and let out a guttural groan as she pulled herself back up – he had not expected the acceleration in her progress. Not that he complained about it. No, he had mentioned to Tehra that he had no idea on why while Tehra had promptly started laughing at his confusion.

In that moment it had clicked with him that Tehra had been helping her. After a good laugh, he had adjusted the pace back to its original brutality. However, learning what he was instructing had gotten easier too. Even if she kept quiet on her little stretches in the Force.

"How many more?" Boba called out then, racing past her with Kihroya right on his heels.

Kihroya had become big with her shoulders now reaching up to Boba's knees. The house had grown too small for her, so Boba had decided to let her outside. Only to his utter dismay, she had decided on following him everywhere. After the first few days of stunned disbelief, he had changed up their schedules. Morning routines were separated where he trained Kihroya some commands. Simple ones, like fetch, stop and follow. Now he was teaching her to attack, sometimes making her stop in her rampage.

Critter bodies – half-eaten and half-discarded – she had to clear away each morning was increasing rapidly. To the point she had contemplated keeping her inside at certain times. Alas… Kih was at least eating an invasive species, so she let her continue.

"Thirty-two!" She gasped out, starting to pull herself back up.

"Eighteen still to go!" He yelled, barreling back out of her view with Kihroya shooting after him.

She groaned as she watched him disappear and lowered herself so her toes were touching the ground again. This exercise had seemed to so easy when he had demonstrated it…. Now… she inhaled deeply summoning the Force to pool into her arms and stomach. Using the Force to enhance her movements and strength. Sure enough, the strain was barely existent anymore when she continued. Easier and faster. Like an untrained muscle she had never known had been there waiting for her to use it.

Strange to have someone give suggestions, little hints for her to try alone. To enhance rather than separation, as a way to slowly ease instincts into life after all the years of active suppression. It worked, even caught herself using it subconsciously on Kihroya. Summoning small critters for Kih to chase around whenever she was not glued to Boba's side. If Boba had noticed, he had made no comment about it yet. Nor was any indication in the Force that he knew. But he was elusive there to say the least, there was no real telling whether he did or not. Maybe it would never be mentioned. She knew she could live with never talking about it for months or years. After all she had done this for a decade now. Or until she got good enough to escape both Boba and Tehra. Wasn't this what they were training her towards in the end?

Though today would be cut short. Monts and Kertan would arrive today just in time before the big celebration tomorrow and were going to stay indefinitely. Last time Monts had called there had been this worried tilt his tone. Given with how the so far dormant darkness had starting pressing on her shields again… it meant nothing good. Like a breath that was held waiting to be released. Here and whenever the news revolved around the ever growing tensions between the Arions and the Brents. Connected, one exhale here meant an inhale there.

One last pull up before she let herself drop to the ground. Rubbing her hands she waited for the other two to come around. Hand-to-hand would be next… if they still had the time. Given that Monts wanted to go to the still ongoing market with them.

Didn't take long for Kihroya to zip into view first. A blur of fur and too large ears with a screeching squeak from a chew toy in her maw. Just as Boba rounded the corner, grinning smugly.

"Good job," he came to a stop next to Kihroya whose tail started swishing excitedly as he scratched behind her ears. "Now, let go."

Altharya chuckled when the tooka let go, the toy falling to the ground as she sat up on her hind legs. Solely focused on the treat now hovering above her head just out of reach. A few seconds went by as Boba waited for Kihroya not to snatch the toy up again.

"Good," he repeated, letting Kihroya snatch the treat which was devoured in two big bites.

"I swear I gave her food this morning!" Altharya joked as the tooka began cleaning her paws.

"You know her," Boba cooed down, not bothering to look up. "Always hungry."

"Should have called her Neverfull," Altharya snorted, watching as Kihroya started to roll in the dirt purring loudly.

"What's that for a name?" Boba retorted. "Kihroya sounds way better."

"You still have not told me what it means."

"A made up name," Boba waved her off quickly.

Too quickly. There was a meaning. Frowning she watched him fawn over Kihroya a bit more. But then he straightened up.

"Ready?"

She dropped into her combat stance.

"Only a few rounds before we need to get ready," Boba reminded her.

He lunged forward and they were off. Dodging and throwing punches and kicks. Even months after daily drills, she could barely keep up with Boba's speed. No matter how many times he assured her that it took time and patience, she felt that when the time came she would be wholly unprepared.

They only got four rounds in. All of which ended in her being thrown into the dirt with Boba standing over her.

"That's it for today," he said while helping her back up. "But tomorrow we are doing double rounds on staff fights." Boba threatened jokingly, pointing her at her nose.

Altharya rolled her eyes theatrically at him causing him to chuckle.

"Get moving! You get the fresher first."

"How generous," she snarked before turning around to walk into the house.

Boba was already waiting for her once she was done, pushing inside with his own fresh set of clothes in his arms. On the couch sat Kihroya who upon seeing her let out a curious meow.

"Happy aren't we?" Altharya asked, smiling widely as the tooka yawned showing her sharp teeth. "I wonder what your name means…," Altharya thought out loud. "I know it's in Mandoa…."

He did have a datapad that had a self-updating dictionary of Mandoa on it. 'Official Mandoa' as he had called it with a derisive snort when she had asked him once about it. Something he had only used when he forgot words. Last week he had stood in the kitchen for a good minute trying to remember the word for 'smoke'. Until it clicked and he started to yell 'carud' suddenly which had startled her making her cut herself with the knife she had been using to chop vegetables.

The water was still running in the fresher when she looked to where she knew he kept the datapad. Enough time to quickly look it up and push it back into its former place. Also – she stretched out her hand – it would be most likely her only opportunity today to practice telekinesis. It flew into her hand almost immediately, crashing against her palm making it sting. Hissing, she flicked it on. Words and phrases ran across… and she squinted at the symbols. Not basic, all in Mandoa.

This was going to be difficult…. Sighing she clicked on an empty space. More symbols. Right… not this one. Another? Finally the aurebesh alphabet turned up, a turning loading symbol dimming the options out. Maybe she could try and learn some words. Then she might understand what Boba sometimes muttered under his breath when he thought she was not listening. She looked to Kihroya who was lying on her back now pawing into the air happily. The loading stopped. Far too soon in her opinion. Altharya frowned when a single interpretation appeared on the screen.

That little….

"Boba!" She yelled, startling Kihroya who pressed herself flat on her stomach.

The water stopped and a heartbeat later the door opened with a confused Boba peeking out.

"Yes?"

"You called Kih 'cat'?!"

He blinked at her. Surprised until his eyes landed on the datapad in her hands. A sheepish smile got sent her way. All she needed to know that it had been deliberate.

"You liked how it sounded," he defended himself holding up his hands.

"After you suggested it!"

Before Boba could answer, a loud metallic clang could be heard from upstairs. Footsteps started marching above their heads. Seemed like Monts and Kertan had arrived.

"I hear Boba did something?" Monts joked, appearing in the door way grinning from ear to ear.

"Oh, I want to hear this!" Kertan poked his head around Monts with a big smirk.

"Two seconds!" Boba called, closing the door quickly.

"What did he do?" Monts asked her.

Altharya pointed at Kihroya who on cue had jumped on top of the couch to greet the Weequays. "Meet Kihroya."

"You two named her what?" Monts asked incredulously.

"I just found out." She crossed her arms.

"Dad," Kertan interrupted then. "I promised Mari I'd…"

"Sure, go!" Monts patted Kertan's shoulder. "We will find you later."

"Alright!" Kertan was already skipping out of the house, with a small back slung across his back.

The fresher's doors opened again, revealing Boba with still damp hair. "You told him then?"

Altharya nodded and Monts burst into laughter. "No wonder Altharya here is mad! I'd throw a pillow at you, but I really need to sit down. My knees, I tell you...!"

"It is not like we are blocking the couch or whatever." Boba deadpanned.

With a groan Monts sat down, leaning back. "Now onto the things we need to talk about."

"You mentioned some things." Boba said, sitting down as well.

"Yes," Monts stretched out his legs and his knees cracked. "There are rumours in Ebonyo that are interesting."

"What are they saying?"

"Bounty hunters are disappearing. While on a job for the Arions… just never returned. No body, no contact… just 'poof' gone!"

"Isn't that normal?" Boba was frowning. "We all accepted the risk of being caught in the crossfire, especially with the tensions running high."

"Sure, but never in the numbers we are having now," Monts replied. "Almost half are gone and the other half is getting antsy. Some are talking about dropping their contracts."

"Cowards." Boba snorted. "It was no secret that war was inevitable."

"What I find interesting is that Rion and Lireth were the ones to be killed."

"Why?"

"How much did he tell you about his last job?"

"Rion?"

"Yes."

"Nothing really."

"Let me tell you what I know," Monts continued. "It had been an entire team. From what I heard, the mission had been to go into Brent territory and looking for spies."

"You were listening on their conversation?"

"They were not exactly quiet." Monts huffed. "They were the only ones in the cantina that early in the morning.

"I see."

"When they returned… four were missing. The others agreed to never meet again or utter a word about it to anyone. Whatever had happened, it must have been…"

"Catastrophic?" Boba supplied.

Monts nodded, tired lines more visible on his face.

"Rion was skittish when I met him again," Boba had a pensive look on his face. "Almost told me… but deflected aggressively almost immediately after."

"Lireth had been on that mission too," Monts quietly added. "No way had that been a coincidence that they were the ones that died."

"Tehra and I had our suspicions," Boba had a careful tone when he spoke. "When it was ruled as an accident, we had no grounds to speak loudly about it."

"Just observing?"

"Like everyone else," Boba huffed. "But the Rishii don't and it is difficult enough to keep up appearances around them. Either they found something to be silenced for or the Brents are taking revenge."

"It all points to one thing: We have a mole in this village," Monts suddenly said. "And these are dangerous times to have one."

"We cannot act openly," Boba reminded. "Without proof or knowing who…"

"This is why I decided to stay longer."

"Can your cantina handle that?"

"I sold it."

"What?"

"War is coming," Monts explained. "I am done fighting and Kertan wants to study geology. With the money we can set up another life elsewhere where he can go to a good university. Once the inter-semester break is over, we are gone."

"Fair," Boba shrugged. "You closed the contract?"

"I did. Lorena Arion guaranteed absolute discretion and is allowing Wegret to exist as it is for now. On the condition that we root this mole out."

"How has she gotten wind of it? Because…"

"She thought it more prudent to catch the mole. If we do, she might consider letting this continue."

"Holding it above our heads?" Boba blew out a sharp breath.

"In essence."

"Arions…" Boba grumbled. "What now?"

"For now? Observe like you said," Monts decided. "The market and festival should be a good cover."

"We won't be the only ones doing this."

"Course not, but we can go from the exclusion principle."

"Al?" Boba finally looked to her. "Can you go and find Tehra, please? Need to get ready still and she is already waiting."

He wanted her out of the house. Raising an eyebrow at the two of them, she pushed herself off the wall she had been leaning against. Fine, she could do that. Tehra was a way better person to hold a conversation with anyway.

"We will be with you in a bit," Monts promised soothingly when she opened the door.

She shot them both a small smile before closing the door.

The market had started a few weeks ago. Filling up the streets and Tehra had been running herself haggard giving arriving guests their keys to the rooms above her cantina. Only today was her only few hours of peace she could spare to meet with them. Tehra was waiting already for her a few streets away from the whole chaos. Her ornaments shimmered from afar. But her impatience was even more visible.

"Monts just arrived!" Altharya held up her hands in greeting.

A corner of Tehra's mouth twitched up, "He is late. Can I assume that he and Boba are still catching up?"

"Yes, those two wanted to be alone."

Tehra's expression grew sharp at her reply. "Are they having a round of tihaar?"

"Boba doesn't…" Altharya started to defend him.

Tehra let out a loud snort, "Believe me, he does!"

"As long as we don't have to carry them around the rest of the day," Altharya grumbled. "Do you want to start somewhere?"

"Well, I have not eaten yet and I doubt you have other than breakfast?" Tehra asked.

Altharya shook her head.

"Well, I found a stand that has particularly good lemon bites!"

By the time they got the bites, the streets around them had filled to the brim. A step back or forth and she'd bump into someone else. It was a steady flow of people and they were meandering along just looking at the stands. Until Tehra stopped them in front of a stand where small mosaics were put on display. Local folktale motifs from what she could see, the moon goddess and others she did not quite know yet. Dark blue, turquoise and white stones, with yellow ones sprinkled in between. Beautiful, and she could see it in the house, between the window of the eating area leading to the kitchen. At least, in her mind, it would fit. Biting into her next treat, she kneeled down to look at the template form that was for sale. Where was the price tag? If she could convince Boba – or more pester him for days on end – he would install it.

"Are you looking for one?" She asked Tehra who was looking at another template.

"Not really," Tehra admitted. "Thinking of it though. Maybe for my flat."

"Why not in the cantina?"

"Too easy to damage once someone decides to have a brawl. T expensive and take too long to make for that," Tehra shook her head.

"Boba said that no one would be stupid enough to start one in your cantina."

"There are a lot of stupid people around," Tehra deadpanned. "And with all the tourists around, we have more stupidity potential."

Altharya had to suppress a snort. "What are you thinking of potentially getting?"

Tehra shrugged. "That is up for debate honestly. Not much in my life is worth immortalizing."

"Nothing?"

"My first Akul maybe?" Tehra mused out loud.

"What is an Akul?"

"A predator native on Shili," Tehra explained turning around to walk away from the stand. "It is a rite of passage in my tribe."

Altharya tilted her head, curious now what Tehra might tell her.

"Once you passed, you make your first headdress out of the akul's teeth while the meat will provide food for an entire village for months," Tehra continued and then pointed at the row of jagged ivory glinting teeth framing her forehead. "These are from mine."

Altharya felt her eyes widen. Teeth? Strange, she had thought those were made of metal. But now that Tehra mentioned it, the texture looked too different to be metallic.

"Didn't think those were teeth," Altharya said. "How would you go about designing a mosaic like that?"

"You commission someone who makes a template for the others to build it around on," Tehra explained.

"Have you found someone who'd do it yet?"

"Not yet," Tehra waved her off. "Honestly I am not sure on when either. When I retire maybe?"

"Wouldn't that close the cantina?"

"No," Tehra chuckled. "There are always other bounty hunters who wish to run cantinas in their retirement. It is how these circles work."

"The one on Teth had been doing it for decades and I never heard about him ever thinking of retiring."

"Some never really get away from the bounty hunting," Tehra shrugged. "Cantinas are the line one can walk between civilian and bounty hunters."

"Are there other lines?"

"There are more," Tehra made a face. "Just not many who are that safe."

Before Altharya could ask more, someone yelled their names. Turning around they saw Monts strolling towards them with Boba in tow.

"Monts!" Tehra yelled back. "Long time no see!"

"I now realise that was a mistake!" Monts winked stopping next to them.

"Not that you ever correct it," Tehra fired back drily. "So, did you bring tihaar with you again?"

"Maybe?" Monts held up his hands in mock surrender.

"How much did you drink?" Altharya frowned at Boba who quirked an eyebrow at her question.

"A glass," Boba replied smoothly before it took on a joking tone. "We left enough for you even."

"I am not dealing with any hangovers!" Altharya threatened shooting the two men a dark look.

"Wouldn't dream of it," Boba snorted.

Altharya rolled her eyes at him and looped an arm under Tehra's.

"What were you guys looking at?" Boba asked pointing at the stand behind them.

"I was thinking of maybe getting a mosaic," Tehra answered.

"Why would you want one?" Monts seemed taken aback.

"Some more colour. You should think of one too," Tehra sniffed giving them a pointed glare. "Your house is a grey block, ghastly."

"Kertan has one!" Monts waved her off. "And I have my Klat'sem."

Altharya leaned over to Boba and asked. "What is a Klat'sem?"

"Weaved patterns," he explained whispering back. "Traditional art from his homeworld."

"Ah."

"Also, Kertan will most likely be up for hours tonight. I can lend you some ear muffs if you want?"

"Ear muffs?"

"Speaking from experience," Boba grinned.

"I am somehow afraid to ask."

"You should," Boba muttered conspiratorially.

"Are you being dramatic?" Altharya frowned at him.

"No," Boba gave her a look. "I am entirely serious."

Altharya had to laugh now. Somehow she doubted that Kertan would keep them up for the entire night.

"Monts!" Boba called. "Don't you want to pick up your orders now? Mari said the stand would be by the lake."

"Orders?" Tehra asked curiously.

"Ordered a geology kit," Monts said. "Kertan seems to be fascinated by it and the troupes here do excavate their own materials. I saw then that they have introduction kits for children now so I ordered one for him."

"Since when is Kertan interested in that?" Tehra asked. "Last time he had been engrossed in this math book."

"Well, ever since there was a documentary on the holovision and he has been talking about nothing else," Monts explained. "Now he can scratch at stone for the next few weeks, as long as he is happy."

"It is entertainment," Tehra realized. "I hope you have enough shelf space to keep the stones."

They had reached the street that led around the lake. Stands flanked the opposite street side from the shore, but there were less people there. Most had already left for the lunch break Altharya supposed looking at the chrono on her holocom, slowly streaming towards the food stands that had been built up in the town square. Frankly, it was a relief that it was just them in this small connecting alley to where the stand was located for the geology kits.

All peaceful and Altharya let out a sigh feeling some tension draining from her shoulders.

Until… someone screamed.

Shock drilled into her skull. The immediate silence that followed was oppressing. Altharya stumbled until Boba gripped the back of her shirt tightly. For a brief heartbeat, nothing moved or dared to breathe. Boba had tensed, his other hands on his blaster while his eyes roamed around for any threat. Then more screams deadened her ears and she felt herself flinching violently.

But they were running now.

Her feet had their own mind as she ran after Boba who seemed to weave through people who had materialised in front of them like water through cracks. Fear and horror froze her bones, making her feel heavier, disassociated from everything around. They whirled around a corner and stopped. Back to where the lake was glittering only in a more secluded space.

She saw then.

Saw the ship hurling towards them. Saw the smoke trailing behind it, thick and obscuring the sky behind. Flames consuming it entirely. It was going to hit the houses behind them.

So many were going to die… The houses, the marketplace where she could sense all the people still trying to flee from there. No matter how far they'd run most will die. Just like they would.

Only if she failed.

But this time… she would not. Could not. She could allow nothing else.

Her hands shot forward, the Force already collecting in them at her silent command. Stretched out to the shuttle. Slipping into her grip, sinking into her arms where it pulled painfully down to her elbows. It hurt…. It hurt so much. The pain shot into her head, searing bright hot behind her eyelids. Blind now, she wobbled on her feet. But she kept her hold. Nothing else mattered. Metal creaked in her mind and she felt it stutter to a stop, just as cold sweat broke out on her back and head.

Hands were gripping at her, ones that could only belong to Boba. Everything else was too numb, the weight deadening her sense of touch.

"To the right, throw it into the water," Boba was whispering through the haze.

A hand settled on her shoulder, pushing some of the pain down. Clarity returned to her, shapes and the body of water crystallising in her vision again. Yes, into the water. Where it could hurt no one. It hovered just above the shore. Still too close but she could no longer hold on either. Violent cramps wracked through her fingers when she flicked them away from her, her gut rioting now.

The shuttle was thrown backwards, towards the middle of the lake. Water sprayed up, hissing and steam washing over them as it crashed in. Wet, Altharya felt her knees buckle and she would have fallen if Boba had not grabbed her around the waist holding her up.

"Good," he muttered into her ear. "You did well."

Breathing hurt like needles driving into her lungs and she could only groan in response.

"What is wrong with her?" She heard Monts' concerned question.

"What she did was taxing for her," Tehra replied frantically another set of hands gripping at her now. "We need to move to somewhere no one can see us! Boba, can you carry her? There should be a corner somewhere we can disappear into!"

"Can we get to your flat from here?" Monts asked quietly.

She felt herself being hauled up, an arm around her shoulders and legs. Nose burned horribly when her head jerked back harshly and she could only muster up a whimper.

"Too many eyes," Tehra hissed above the sound of footsteps. "Do we really need anyone else to know that there is a force sensitive here? Especially with people like us here?"

"I think that is past any suspicion now," Monts snapped back. "I need to find Kertan. Will find you later!"

Tehra let out a long sigh and Altharya could feel Monts retreating even through her closed eyes.

"What can we even say that could have been?" Boba asked quietly, re-adjusting his grip on her.

Her nose was pressed into his shirt while everything still whirled in her mind. Any more movement and she knew she'd vomit. The bile was up in her throat, waiting for any disturbance.

"There are a number of possibilities we could throw in," Tehra listed off fast. "Emergency thrusters… someone was still alive and got to the controls… Anything that is more plausible than a Force-sensitive."

"I don't think we'd convince many," Boba sounded sceptical. "Al, how are you feeling?"

What question was that? She wheezed, still fighting with the bile fighting against her.

"I don't think we can move from here any time soon," Boba said to Tehra.

"Breathe with your nose," Tehra sounded close now. "Long and try to relax."

It burned when Altharya drew in a deep breath. But she felt her muscles in her shoulder relaxing slightly when she slowly exhaled.

"Good," Tehra muttered. "You have saved us. Thank you."

* * *

Disaster! Today had been a complete disaster! His plan had been foolproof! Everything had been executed to complete perfection. By all predictions, this should have gone without a hitch. Rubbing his forehead, he locked the door to his office, switching on the most secure channels to his employers. A headache was already brewing but this could not wait.

In the end the shuttle was completely destroyed, just as he had planned. But now the parts could be salvaged from the lake and not completely burst apart on the rocky mountainside. Which was what should have happened. Instead, it had hurled right into the town. He breathed out, deflating completely. That had been – thank the Emperor – prevented. No point in brooding over what could have been. Right now, he had other problems that were rearing their heads even at this second. This staging point would be lost if he did not act soon. If not right this second.

It might still get the desired effect though: the uncovering of a Brent operative. One who suspected him of being a double agent. That end could still be salvaged if he moved tonight and made the right call the next day. Once the evidence was planted, the Arions would have their culprit to blame the accident on as well. All that could be truly put together from the literal and figurative rubble this incident had left behind. It would not put this village in jeopardy while also securing his position more.

If only he hadn't discovered another problem. One that was far worse than the entire disaster here. No matter what the rumours painted of heroic pilots gaining some control back and crashing it into the lake, he knew that it couldn't true. They had been dead before lift-off; he had made sure of that. He had to restrain himself for snorting in derision every time that particular story was muttered in his direction.

No.

A force-sensitive powerful enough to halt a crashing shuttle and throw it into a lake. His Lord would be interested in knowing the whereabouts of a potential acolyte. Or a surviving Jedi…. He wanted to slam his head into the desk. First Boba Fett was nearby with whatever plan he was preparing for and now a force-sensitive? He could not keep track of everything!

He rubbed his face, exhaling into his hand, his headache escalating to a sharp stabbing in his forehead. One thing at a time. Planting evidence and gather intelligence on Boba's job could wait. First, he had to contact Darth Vader. As much as he dreaded to do so, his predecessor had been strangled to death over the holo-com. Explaining that had landed him here to begin with.

With shaking fingers, he slowly pushed in the secure frequency code that would direct him straight to the Lord's com. His heart was pounding in his throat when the familiar clicks of a building up connection were heard. It took not a moment, when the blue hiss of an image appeared.

"What?"

It was definitely not Vader. The suit and the height and proportions were amiss and wrong. A younger man openly scowling down on him with his arms crossed. Lightsabers hung from his sides, signifying him as a Sith acolyte. If an acolyte was taking the call, then Vader must be busy. He swallowed before dropping into a curt bow.

"My Lord," he started gathering his thoughts again. "I have information that will be of use to you and your Master."

The man seemed to think for a brief second, his scowl deepening. Contemplating whether to hear him out or not.

"Go ahead," it sounded haughty like he dared him to provide insignificant information.

"I found indications that a force-sensitive lives near my location. One that could be recruited as an acolyte or a former Jedi, I have not found more on this."

The surprise was visible on the man's face. "Where?"

"Drog System, the village is called Wegret."

"I see," the Sith said slowly. "I shall relay it to my Master. You have my word that it will be dealt with. Anything else?"

"My position is secure again. The plan is moving along accordingly," he replied, relief sinking into his stomach.

"Good. Continue," was all that was said before the call was cut abruptly.

Leaving him without the blue shine and unbalanced in his office. Still with his heart in his throat, he felt himself drawing a shuddering breath. At least it went better than he had expected. As long as it was dealt with and he could breathe easier knowing that a force-sensitive would be dealt with soon. The less of them the better. Now he had to wait a bit before moving again.

All would be well. He just had to have faith in the Empire.


	23. Chapter 23

**AN: Real life hit me. The cat I based Kihroya on was killed and I have only now gotten to the point of being able to write again. I am very sorry for the delay still.**

* * *

It had been a full day since the shuttle had crashed and Altharya still could not move from her bed. After the chaos had somewhat ceased and all attention off the little side roads, Boba had carried her back into the house. Tehra was tied up at the cantina, the visitors always on the verge of panic and complete chaos. From what Boba and Monts had been saying, the cantina now held others who were now too afraid to take a step outside in fear. Apparently some were refusing to pay as well. Not that it was a problem, but with so many people… it was hard to keep track of everyone and everything.

The market had been called off then, all festivities too. When the Arions had moved in with their investigators the merchants had packed up and left as soon as the clear had been given. Something she had only heard about hours after the rumbles of starships had blown over the house, making it impossible for her to rest. Boba had not slept yet as far as she knew, but he did come to give her updates or just watch her if he thought she was asleep. Not that she could concentrate for too long, exhaustion draining any energy she would have had to ask. Or to just acknowledge his presence. Never would she have thought that this would be this tiring….

Her stomach felt like it was suspended in bacta goo while her head swirled if she moved too abruptly. This was misery, but it was worth it. No one had been hurt from what she had gathered. Made being confined to the bed and a bucket nearby more worth it. Just in case Boba had said after she had thrown up on him that night.

A rumble rocked the house. Squeezing her eyes shut, she fought the bile rising back up. The investigation was still going on, all Arion affiliated officers. Monts had been whispering about packing their things, but Boba had cautioned and that nothing had been decided yet. From what she had overheard… whether in the Force or if they were talking right outside the room, she could not really tell. Nothing was known, no culprit, no motive, no method… nothing. If she wasn't feeling like retching every few minutes, she wouldn't be this useless. Curling up in a tighter ball, she pushed her forehead against the blessedly cool metal frame of the headboard.

Even with the Arions turning over every stone here, she knew that Boba was doing his own digging and prodding. Wouldn't be him if he would just sit around. No, those incidents had been too close and not even the Arions were blind enough to not make this connection. Worry gnawed along her skin when her thoughts always circled back to the two searching on their own.

They were capable… but that did not stop the feeling.

She breathed in, forcing the freshly cooled down vented air in. That was when she heard light padding of paws across the floor. Looking to the side, her head suddenly too light at the motion, she saw Kihroya quietly moving to her. Tail high up in the air. Dropping her head back down, she smiled. The ever curious tooka… had she sensed her misery? Animals were strange that way, Struhn used to tell her tales about how far more intuitive they were sometimes. A loud meow and then the mattress dipped as the tooka started sniffing at her face.

"You normally like Boba more," Altharya muttered more to herself, but still scratched behind Kihroya's ears nonetheless. "Has he sent you?"

A stupid question, but Kihroya had occasionally bouts of intelligence that no one could pretend were just a coincidence. She needed to talk though, whether to a tooka or another being, it did not matter. This house was so silent and quiet, sometimes so much the pounding of her heart was all she could hear. Strange to think that two men could move so silently just downstairs.

Useless, she felt utterly useless.

The blanket moved next to her, Kihroya was pawing at it trying to find a comfortable place to settle down on.

"Are they not letting you sleep downstairs?" Altharya cooed at her and Kihroya's ears flapped slightly in acknowledgment.

Or what she thought an acknowledgment from a tooka would look like. Then she found a spot to settle, flicking her tail around to sink her face into the still fluffy fur. Round eyes found her followed by a long yawn that showed all the sharp teeth.

"Alright, I will stop talking," Altharya chuckled, closing her eyes again.

Kihroya sighed and Altharya let herself drift off to a light doze.

It felt like she had just slipped away when her eyes opened again on their own. But the chrono said otherwise. Four hours? Late afternoon by the looks of it. Her stomach felt fine for the moment, so she turned on her side. But then it growled and her throat was so parched that swallowing hurt. Food… yesterday she had not been able to keep any down, so now… she only hoped it was something that would not greet the floor after.

"How are you feeling?" Boba's voice made her look to the door where he was leaning against the door frame.

Arms crossed with stress lines craving into his forehead. A headache was flaring in intense bouts around his head. Wincing in sympathy, she sat up on her elbow.

"Could be better," she joked. "Gut is killing me still."

He deepened his frown and pushed himself off. "Sure you do not want some medication now?"

"Don't think they'd help," she replied, already feeling the sharp stabs in her stomach and head starting again. "Honestly, I just need to sleep it off some more."

"I find it curious that it took so much out of you," Boba finally spoke hesitantly.

She huffed. Strange? Moving objects was far harder than illusions! Though, she regarded him through her eyelashes, he did not know that. Stars, they had actively avoided that conversation for months now! He did not even know what she was capable of! That she had been trying to grow stronger in secret. Seemed like he deemed this a good time to approach this… issue.

"I was never good at moving… things," she explained, shifting over so he could sit down next to her.

"Tehra?" He asked quietly, sitting down near her waist. "You must have been at it… for a while? No way you haven't…"

"There is something else," she shuffled backwards to sit against the headboards.

"We have been avoiding this for too long," Boba sighed, rubbing his face in open tiredness. "I know very little…."

"We have," Altharya agreed, drawing a long breath through her nose. "I don't know if I can explain this appropriately…"

She paused, grappling for words that were not springing to her mind. In his confusion, Boba tilted his head.

"Would you believe me if I told you?"

"I have seen stranger things," he shrugged, a small smile tugged briefly on his mouth.

"I can make things appear?" She quietly said, folding her hands in her lap so her fingers were not obviously shaking.

A blink, disbelief worn openly as he opened his mouth and closed it again. Stunned he sat there, unmoving until a spark of curiosity sparkled. "I admit… I have never heard of that."

A laugh bubbled up and she had to press a hand in front of her mouth. At that he gave her a long side look while smirking as well. He leaned back, putting an arm on the other side of her hip to fully face her.

"So," he looked away then. "You could show me?"

Her laugh vanished and she regarded him looking anywhere but at her for now. This was unknown territory for both of them. Her directly been asked to show and for him to approach the Force without openly worn hatred. Carefully, she summoned the feel of fur to her mind and then… Kihroya sat on her chest. Her weight pressing down, the little ear flicks were all too familiar. Stunned silence sunk over him when he looked to where the illusion now lifted its paw to lick at it. A moment long, nothing moved. All wonder on his part, a finger hovering in the air close to touching.

It ended with her strength fleeing and she had to dispel it. Head lolled to the side, she had to force her breaths in and out slowly. Stars, this was… she should have just made a bird.

He looked into her eyes, searching for… something. Lips pursed with worry dancing along his finger tips that brushed her hair line that was still soaked in cold sweat. A little relief that seeped in from them, until his hand cupped her cheek pushing her head back up.

"I… see," he murmured. "Suppose… Tehra is teaching you this?"

"As best as she can," Altharya wheezed. "Without being sensitive to the Force," she grimaced. "But she has some advice."

"Suppose her time with this Jedi has some uses still," he laughed. "But moving objects is difficult."

She nodded, rubbing her now aching temples. Sighing, he reached out, rubbing circles to release the tension there.

"Monts has dinner ready for the three of us. Do you feel like you can make the walk down?"

"Where is Kertan?" She frowned.

"With friends," he explained. "Was invited to hang out for a sleepover."

"So soon?"

"You do not grow up in a bounty hunter village and not learn to move on from these things fast. Especially if no one of ours died."

"Did you?" She asked, curious now.

Surely he had grown up in one of such village too? He stilled, shoulders tense and licked his lips off balance. Then he shook his head. "It was different."

She swallowed. Asking would be pointless, he would not answer. This part of his past was under tight wraps. Even Monts only dared to make vague suggestions or references.

"I can try?" She said instead, slowly pushing her legs to the edge of the bed. "No guarantees though."

His demeanor shifted, like a ripple on water. Gently he wound an arm around her shoulder, lifting her into a sitting position.

"You need to eat," he stood in front of her, hands out for her to grasp.

"Not that I have kept it down before," she remarked drily, grasping them.

"I could carry you down?" He offered with a serious tone.

Now she laughed. "Like in the beginning?"

He snorted at the joke. "Just like then. I might feel up for flying us down."

"Oh stars no!" She groaned and he pulled her to her wobbly feet.

One hand grabbed her elbow and he guided her to the door. Almost like the times she had to do the same to patients who needed assistance walking after waking from sedatives. Or ones who had lost limbs and needed to get used to their prosthetics.

"Monts made soup," he spoke when they reached the stairs, slowing down to make sure her knees wouldn't shake too much.

"What kind of soup?"

"Lots of spices, some gizka meat…" He thought for a moment. "Oh and some vegetables whose names I forgot."

"Sounds tasty," she commented.

They had walked down half the stairs.

"Sounds?" Monts mock-outraged called out. "It is!"

"I know that!" Boba shouted back. "She doesn't though!"

"Where's Kih?" She asked.

"Outside," Boba nodded his way to the door. "Found a nice patch of dust she hasn't rolled in yet."

Of course…, chuckling she leaned more on his shoulder to get down the last step. That was when the smell hit her, making her stomach growl loudly. Twisting painfully at how empty it was, screaming to regain some strength. She slumped into a chair Monts had pulled out.

"Feeling any better?" Monts asked, walking around the table to his seat.

"Had been worse," she tried to wave it off, but she already had the spoon in hand and could not tear her eyes from the pot.

"Understatement," Boba teased, sitting down next to her. "By the way, we found something you might want to hear."

"Found?" She frowned looking to Boba, missing Monts pouring out a bowl for her.

"Hence why I sent Kertan to his friends, so we can talk freely," Monts explained. "Anyhow, Boba and I had a walk."

"Were thinking of building a fence," Boba shrugged. "That was when some news came in."

"Surprising, not 'possible' news," Monts added darkly.

"It has to do with the incidents?" She asked before pushing a full spoon into her mouth.

"An arrest," Boba pressed forth, mouth a thin line now. "A Brent agent."

"A…," she swallowed quickly despite how hot it was. "That feels…"

"Rushed?" Monts supplied.

"Yes," she agreed.

"Our thoughts exactly," Boba continued holding out a piece of bread to her. "The guy was definitely an agent from the Brents, but this smells too much of a set-up. And we have no evidence."

"Yet, an agent was uncovered," she emphasized.

"True," Boba concede. "Kih found something though."

That must have happened when she must have dozed off for hours.

"This forest is deceptively large and we found a make-shift storage," Monts quietly said.

"Storage for what?"

"Weapons, armour… heavy ordance," Boba listed off. "Far too many for a single person…."

"But enough for a small team to handle," Monts muttered. "War is brewing. We found the preparation of a small invasion. There are more agents here."

"So…"

"We need to find them, but the connection between them, the shuttle crash and the murders is too shaky."

"We do know the connection to the Brents," Altharya pointed out. "Maybe they knew about the agents here?"

"It would make sense," Monts pulled a grimace. "Get rid of the ones who know and be safe."

"But why then the shuttle?" Altharya muttered. "I sense the connection…."

"We have several questions. Why would they need a shuttle to crash into the village? Guaranteeing more than half if not most of us dying? Terror? To get rid of us to be undisturbed? Or just vulnerable to be easily overrun later?"

"What we have now is a village potentially crawling with Brents and we have no clue," Boba growled, frustration plain to hear.

"Yes, but still… why was one of theirs so quickly discovered?"

"Betrayal," Boba immediately shot back. "There was a leak to stuff, someone who was wavering who knows or they sacrificed one to give us the illusion of safety."

"Would make sense anywhere else, but not here. We breathe betrayal," Monts snorted. "I'd bet on a double agent."

"Either way" – Boba hissed – "we don't know and we need to fast. Time is running and we have no real footing while everything is too loosely connected."

Altharya remained silent, shoving more food into her mouth. Trying to appease her gut that still felt too queasy. What else was there for her to say? That she sensed the danger? That soon it would fall over them? That she could sense the chilly wind and claws of it on her neck? That she saw the fires and the panic from that night in the Jedi temple again?

Nothing, she said nothing. Only ate the food in silence while Boba and Monts theorized. Frustrated at not coming to any conclusions, there were far too many questions than answer.

And she would rather be anywhere but here.

* * *

 **Next chapter will be longer, more actiony.**


	24. Chapter 24

For four days Altharya watched Boba and Monts trying to piece together the events. Who was involved, who could know what…. Questions that brought back the burning bile, the dizziness, whenever Boba and Monts discussed their theories too loudly. Far too exhausting to listen, or even think about. Though, sometimes she was asked what she thought, or more… what she sensed in the Force. Only Monts dared to ask her directly with what he wanted to know. Every time he did, Boba would always look into a far corner, avoiding looking at her. She could not blame him… no, but… it hurt still. After the talk they had had, she had hoped - thought- he'd have eased into being less uncomfortable hearing about her sensitivity….

Not that she could really say anything helpful to them. Nothing had changed in the pricking feeling of danger on her skin, out of her reach, lurking on the edge of town. Crawling and waiting for her. It left her jerking awake in the night, drenched in cold sweat as ghostly fingers drew down from her neck down her back. Useless for the whole situation they were in. It only served to deepen the underlying worry in Boba's presence. Why Monts bothered to keep asking her over and over again, escaped her. Nothing had changed, or ever would, in her answers.

Sensing danger meant nothing! With whatever was going on here, it was like saying the water was wet. At least, the two of them worked mostly with their heads down and away from her. Time she spent pouring over the textbook he had gotten her, sometimes with Kihroya keeping her company. Unless Boba and Monts left the house, then she'd be sent to shadow Tehra at her work. "Safety" they told her when she had first protested as she had been in the middle of reading up on a more complex surgical technique. A cantina was not a place she wanted to study in!

At least Boba and Monts did their sweeps through the forest during the mornings. When the cantina was rather empty with the only few patrons clinging to their decaf mugs. Calm and nothing was hurried, as if not a week ago a shuttle had crashed into the nearby cliffside. Maybe this was what came with being a bounty hunter: being unaffected by strangers' deaths. She let out a long sigh as she put the tray she had been carrying down.

"Altharya," Tehra rounded the counter, waving her over.

"Is something?" Altharya frowned at the Togruta who looked more tired these days.

"Maybe," Tehra nodded towards a large pile of dirty dishes near the sink and then lowered her voice. "We are doing this the old way so we can talk."

Eyebrow raised, Altharya followed Tehra over to the sink. As soon as Tehra had turned on the water, Altharya took a plate and started to pile them all in. Usually, their dishwasher could take care of all the dirt, but the faucet had this loud rumbling that drowned out anyone's voice. Though, the cantina was practically empty, no one was even near the bar. There would always be ears, Boba had drilled into her one day.

"I might have found a clue," Tehra said, squeezing soap into the water.

"Why are you telling me and not Boba?"

"You are the only one right now who I trust to be able to pull my plan off."

"Not sure I like the sound of that."

Tehra looked down with a heavy sigh. "I would not ask you if I had any other options."

There was a sombre seriousness gathering between them. Chewing on her lower lip, Altharya regarded Tehra for a moment before asking: "What is going on?"

"Lyude, you know the temporary waitress I hired, witnessed a fight," Tehra dropped her voice even lower and Altharya had to strain her ears to even hear. "Between the guy who was arrested and Emmet, you have met him right?"

"I have briefly," Altharya replied just as quietly. "You see a connection?"

"Yes," Tehra looked way more tired, more uncomfortable than before and Altharya worried for a moment that Tehra had not slept. "This is also why I need you to do me a favour. Yesterday, you told me you can become consciously invisible now?"

With a frown, Altharya squeezed the sponge in her hand tightly as she regarded Tehra through narrowed eyes. It had gotten easier to control this newfound power, yes. But… there was a sinking feeling settling down from the Force she could not shake off. A favour where she'd have to pry for secrets best kept away.

"You want me to spy?"

Tehra grimaced. "Crudely put. Emmet owns a house that lies isolated and he won't be home for a while. The Arion investigators want him around, so this is the perfect window for you to slip in."

"What if he comes back earlier?"

"I or Fett will provide a distraction so you can get out as fast as possible," Tehra replied seriously leveling her with a hard stare.

"Boba?" Altharya frowned. "Isn't he with Monts?"

"Still around," Tehra huffed dismissively. "Believe me, that boy is attracted to any trouble brewing."

"Not comforting at all," Altharya remarked drily, scrubbing at a particularly stubborn spot on a plate. "Do you truly think Emmet would go against the Arions? He is employed by them after all."

"Has Fett never told you why Emmet was assigned here?"

"No? Why should he have?"

"Suppose he did not anticipate Emmet being relevant," Tehra shrugged. "Emmet used to be a high ranking risk analyst in one of Arion's fusion reactor factories. As it turned out however, he had taken bribed and when an inspector died to electrocution because Emmet had fudged a safety report, he was re-assigned. His mother is a distant relative to the Arions and only because of her he is here in exile now and not in jail."

"He could be after money again? Revenge?" Altharya put forth.

"Both, more likely," Tehra pulled a sour face. "If he is, it would explain how the Brent agents have gone unnoticed for so long. The one they had arrested used to be a regular patron of mine."

"I see…," Altharya pulled her mouth into a tight line before asking. "When should I go?"

"Not now!" Tehra immediately insisted, rubbing her nose with her forearm, hands dripping with soap water. "Once we are done with this chore. That is where I usually take my lunch break."

"Do you have a plan?"

"I do," Tehra grinned viciously. "In fact, I know his security system's password."

"How?" Altharya could not prevent her jaw from dropping.

"A favour there… another one here… at some point they all slip up when typing in their code," Tehra shrugged again. "Standard infiltration tactics."

"I hesitate to ask how often you have done this."

"My friend used to joke that if they ever forgot theirs, they just had to ask me."

"Pragmatic," Altharya snorted.

Tehra winced slightly. "In a way maybe. It did save them once or twice… until I was too far away and the Empire got to them."

"I am so sorry," Altharya sent her a soft smile, the sour taste of grief filling her mouth when Tehra's face fell briefly.

Then she huffed resolutely, rubbing the bridge of her nose. "They wouldn't want us to be sad. Anyhow," She smiled brightly then, and Altharya winced at the jarring contrast. "Anyhow, as far as I know, Arions always take hours."

"Should we at least tell Boba? Just in case?" Altharya asked cautiously.

"Might not be for the best," Tehra mused. "Scouting out a spot held in potential enemy's hands requires no contact. They won't be back until late evening if not early morning."

"So long?" Altharya stilled in her movements, surprised.

"If they are observing it, then they might not be back for a few days."

"Well, Boba told me that he'd see me tonight."

This time Tehra pulled one of her facial markings up. "Hm. Guess they are just setting up motion sensors and cameras then."

"Do those take long to install?"

"Depends on the tech, the gear and the perimeter that is being observed. The parameters for the tech to send signals and then there is the feedback loop."

"Sounds…" Altharya put a plate on the growing pile of dishes on the side. "Complicated?"

"Once you have the hang of it, it is not really," Tehra chuckled. "I could show you some basics later?"

"Oh sure," Altharya grinned. "Might even surprise Boba with that."

"Fett and surprised? That I do wish to see," Tehra snorted. "Anyways," she nudged Altharya with her elbow. "Whoever does the most dishes gets dibs on the lemon bites."

Emmet's house was, like Boba's and Monts', in the outskirts of the village, surrounded by high white stone walls where only the roof peeked out at the top. In front of it, was a little park like area. Mostly plants and benches with tables for gatherings where Tehra led her to sit down. Lanters still hung from the wall, above the locked gate leading into the closed off courtyard.

"So, tell me what you see," Tehra said, fishing out a lemon bite out of the bag she had won first dibs on.

"What do you mean?" Altharya asked, crossing her arms.

"Tell me what you see. Since this is your first time infiltrating, we will need to cover the base before I let you go at it."

"Why just before I am going in?"

"Cantina is out of the question. Too little time to train you and your sensitivity will be what will get us the most information."

Altharya shook her head in response. Her sensitivity? What did Tehra want to know what she could not find out herself? Why did she not go herself? Though, she squinted her eyes at the too blue sky and the blinding sun, maybe she sought impressions, thoughts shimmering in the air inside? Fine, she could humour this.

"A locked gate?" She finally replied.

"Good. There is more."

"Uhm… high walls?"

"Also good," Tehra's grin had widened a bit. "More."

"Eh…" Altharya frowned, biting on the tip of her tongue.

These were the only ones she could see from here. At least… the ones relevant to them? Sighing, she pointed at the lanterns.

"Do you mean the lanterns? They are decorative, right?"

"Are they?" Tehra prodded. "What do you think it could happen with them?"

Altharya scrunched up her nose. "I guess I could… disturb them?"

"Exactly," Tehra fished for another lemon bite. "Lanterns can be disturbed if you are careless, especially since there is no wind going today. Anything else?"

"The houses behind us? If I climbed her the wall, someone might notice that."

"Good!" Tehra nodded, a smug air around her.

"I do hope that walking through the gate is not truly your plan?" Altharya asked, raising an unimpressed eyebrow at Tehra.

Tehra burst out into a short laughing fit. "Do you see the small bush that is between Emmet's house and his left neighbor? Behind it is a small crack in the wall. You can easily slip in if you are invisible. I will keep an eye out."

"How will I know if Emmet is returning?"

Tehra smiled, pointing at the comlink. "I know your frequency, if someone is approaching there will be one beep."

"What if I need help?"

"You will need to beep me," Tehra held out her wrist, the buttons blinking as it synchronized with hers.

"And you would just stroll in?"

Tehra grew serious then. "Between me and Emmet, I have the better reputation. If I were to go inside to investigate, no one would dare to question it. Should you find proof that he is in cahoots with the Brents, then there will be other agents around. The one caught could have impossibly the only one."

"Boba thought as much," Altharya shrugged.

"I do not want to know what he thinks," Tehra immediately cut in. "What do you think?"

"Boba is…"

"Do you truly want to rely on him more?"

Altharya snapped her mouth shut. Reliant on Boba? Of course she was! He was the one who had gotten her in this mess to begin with! No matter what they all pretended… she would always be kidnapped. Waiting and dreading when Vader demanded her release and…. To hope that Boba would not deliver her was foolish.

Yet… the tendril of this foolish hope would not go away. It gnawed at her thoughts, during the nights when she wanted to fall asleep or whenever he smirked in her direction.

"See what I mean?" Tehra poked her upper thigh. "One day he will not be around and you will need to be able to do these things alone."

"I have only been here for a few months!" Altharya protested, swatting the hand away. "What chance do I stand against fully trained agents?"

"Do you forget the little edge you have over anyone here?" Tehra carefully reminded her. "Use it and there will be nothing for you to worry about."

"You sound so sure?"

"I have seen the power of the Force," Tehra admitted reverently. "Terrifying when wielded by a Master and you… at some point nothing will be able to stop you."

"I hope so," Altharya huffed. "One day I need to escape."

Tehra sighed, avoiding to look in her direction. "I am sure that…" she stopped herself. "Nevermind."

Sure of what? That Boba would let her? Or stop her? Or that she could escape Vader on her own?

"Tehra…," she started to prod.

"I won't say anything," Tehra waved her off.

Altharya sighed, giving her an insistent look.

"Don't worry about it," Tehra insisted for firmly. "You are ready."

Tehra shoved another lemon bite into her hands, shooting her a look that told her not to press the matter. Just what was she hesitant to tell her? Then she frowned.

"You planned this whole thing way before!"

"There is always a plan in case someone becomes a liability," Tehra's tone had grown ice cold. "Remember this, especially if you wish to survive the Empire."

Altharya could only swallow. That… sounded… she shivered at the underlying doom latching onto her stomach.

"I suggest you sneak in now," Tehra whispered suddenly, urgency evident in her tone leaving no room to protest. "No one is watching us, go!"

A ripple… it was all it took for her to disappear from sight. No more pulling on her forehead, to a blinding pain. Nothing. Getting up, she slowly staggered over to the bush. She bit the inside of her cheek. Why do those two felt like ordering her around?! Thorns and large leaves as far as she could see, not even a single glimpse wall peeking out. Briefly she turned to look to Tehra, who was inspecting another lemon bite with interest. Determined, she stuck her hand in, thorns pricking and scratching along her skin. The sting wavered her focus, the pricking and scratching. Gritting her teeth, she pushed her whole arm through. More thorns digging in, arms, her cheeks… This bush looked far smaller outside… She drew in a big breath, gripping the branches in front of her in the Force, stilling them. By the Force, by the time she emerged, she would be covered over with bloody scratches. Those two… she wanted to just read her medical texts!

Her hand hit rough edges of crumbled stone walls. Frantically, she patted around the area, her fingers slipping into a large gap. Large enough for her to... the thorns trying to keep her back as she tried to move.

With a quiet rip, she fell through with a surprised yelp, the thorns finally letting her go. With her breath knocked out, ribcage screaming in pain, she curled into a ball. Coughing, she let her grasp on the Force go, dropping the shroud around her. What was she even doing here? Doing the bidding of a bounty hunter? Breaking and entering… she squeezed her eyes shut. What would Struhn think of her? He'd throw a fit… that mush she knew.

They were doing this for Rion… find out who had killed him and the others. Remember why she was doing this… Groaning she sat up on her knees and looked around. A small courtyard that led up to the house. Two stories, larger than she would have thought a single person would need. On her feet, she crossed her arms, icy chills coating her arms.

Deserted… it felt dead, deserted, unloved. No flicker of life in this little closed off space, in the middle of a fairly lively town. The hair on her arms stood on end, her eyes were drawn to a window on the second floor closed off with heavy shutters. Something was waiting for her behind it, deep in her bones. Darkness, the same darkness that had been pressing on her shields, she could sense it swirling there.

A key? To solve this whole… she took a shuddering breath. How would she get in? Door was closed, the windows too. Not that Tehra could have given her the codes, but she frowned seeing no keypad next to the door. Hadn't Boba mentioned something the other day? When he had to repair their window as its locking mechanism had jammed and he had explained how these worked. Emmet might have the same design… after all, the village was comprised of houses that had been pre-built by the Arions with their rumoured tight regulations. This window began just below her chest, its sill small and narrow. Hesitantly, she touched the metal frame encasing the glass. Somewhere… she squinted to see clearer. Small lever… it would release the window for it to swing inside.

Found it… the small, delicate lever was locked tightly in its mold. She pressed her right hand flatly against the glass, reaching out into the Force. Cool, smooth against her fingers and in the Force. Little tendrils flowed out from her fingers, glowing behind her eyelids, until cold metal hit her fingertips through them. She flicked a finger.

The lever moved out, several clicks until the window swung inwards. Sun light fell into a large room, with desk, chairs… an office? It looked similar to what Struhn had in his little medical station, shelves laden with boxes and records. Stemming her hands on the sill, she hauled herself inside, her feet land landed silently on a carpet muffling the impact. Now, she would have to… No, not yet. She closed the window, clicking it back into its lock. No one could see there was someone here.

Heart pounding in her throat, she turned back. The desk was bare of any paper, only held a large screen and a box with pens. Yet, at the top of the wall, where the shelves ended, hung certifications of a Business Administrator. Some were half hidden behind boxes that looked dusty, open shame and fury clinging to them. Their sour taste left the room feeling empty, strings pulling her away, out of the room. Yet, she could not bring herself to move away. In here, there was something she needed to see, know. The Force squirmed uneasily here, making cold sweat break out on the back of her neck. As if in a dream, she moved towards the desk and shelves. She sank deeper into the Force, where the singularity of her unease crystallised through.

Shining, oozing with death, threads in the Force pressed into one large… she winced at the searing screams careening and echoing in them. Ripping her eyes open, ears ringing, she saw that she had wandered over to the shelf on the right behind the desk and chair. Her hand was outstretched, hovering over a box. Small, inconspicuous, brown plastic and looked as if it had seen better days. Its edges were dented, with a thick layer of dust on the lid.

Carefully, she pulled it out of the shelf, making its contents rattle. By the sound of it metallic. Lifting the lid, she put the box on the desk before truly looking at the contents. On top of everything lay a badge, its symbol glaring up to her. Arion. He had been a higher ranking officer for them before, only to be re-assigned in dishonor to this post. She ghosted her fingers over the badge, bitter memories singing in the grooves that twisted into the Arion symbol. Disgrace, she took the badge out holding it out into the sun light. Dull silver, black veins snaking through it with chinks around the top edge. It had been handled roughly and neglected. Shaking her head, she put it back looking at the rest. Folded papers, some yellowed and edges fraying and others still in their envelopes, a small book and a ring.

Worn, the metal still shining where it probably had been twisted and held. Loved, it looked well-loved. Curious, she reached out. As soon as her fingertips touched it, cold disgusted snapped in making her twitch away. Loss… tears were glinting in the light reflected on the metal.

Throat tight, she stared at the papers, the letters, the badge and the ring. This… these were the shards of a destroyed life in front of her. Numbly, she unfolded the letter at the very top.

A demand of resignation with the offer of re-assignment to this town on the next page.

'I am sorry, Emmet. The culprits are far too entrenched to be punished publicly, the blow-out would be catastrophic and we cannot afford this with the Brents aggressively trying to get a foothold in our market. For your sake, I am asking you to hand in your resignation so I can soften the blow. I know you were not involved, but you were the only one where the evidence was planted. The Arions need someone to take the fall and the people here need someone to blame.'

Taking the fall… innocent? Blinking, she set the letter down, feeling less sure about the unease still crawling at her hands. The other letter, one carefully folded, was more worn, its handwriting faded to a pale gray from what she assumed had once been pure black ink.

'I no longer love you, you disgust me. What you have done is unforgivable. I am returning my wedding band… I never ever want to see you again.'

Round blotches of water blurred the rest of the flowing, faded script out. Tears, the sorrow heavy and excruciating. Her heart sank into her gut, just as her fingers felt leaden as she kept holding on this letter. The hit that had shattered Emmet, leaving the shards lying in one small box. Nothing else was left. All the resentment on the badge, the bitter tears on the letter, the disgust on the ring… Exile, Emmet was an exile, discarded to save face. Releasing a breath, she pinched the bridge of her nose. Pity, she felt pity for a man she subconsciously went invisible around. In her chest a dull ache bloomed. Emmet must have watched his life fall apart, powerless to stop the loss the respect, his family and home.

All because someone decided he had to take the blame for their actions. Feeling powerless, she knew how crippling and paralyzing it was going through it. Once it stopped, everything was over. Like her finding herself on Teth in hiding, and Emmet finding himself in this town, with no voice and shunned by everyone.

No, she slammed the lid back on it, cutting off the last squirm in the Force and shoved the box where she had taken it out from. Why were the screams of the dead people wrapped around this? What had Emmet to do with all of this?

How were they connected?

A chill raced up her back and she took a step back. Those were Rion's and Lireth's screams and more, more to come too. More to come? Mouth dry, she stumbled backwards, until her back hit the door. Emmet was involved… no question about that. Their deaths and those to come would be all on him.

She would have to tell… Who would believe her though? Tehra, Boba and Monts would without question, they knew what she could sense. Without evidence however, no one else would. She would have to keep looking, there must be something that would incriminate him. That was when the Force tugged at her again, insistent, desperately for her to listen. With trembling hands, she opened the door she had been pressed against and stepped into a small corridor that led straight towards, what she presumed to be, the main entrance.

Slowly, she inched her way towards where the corridor opened into an area looking like a waiting area. Seats and a few turned off screens were there. Wasn't this where the bounty hunters here got their bounties? Seemed like she had broken into the space where Emmet was doing his job. There must be a way upstairs…. She closed her eyes, searching for those shimmering threads again. Hidden in the far wall, behind two heavy shelves separating the screens from the seats glimmered the outline of a door set into the wall itself.

Without seeing this through the Force, this was an ordinary wall, no bumps no apparent seams in the wall paintings. She stepped closer, searching for something. Tehra had mentioned a code, so an electronic lock must be around and accessible. Frowning, she inspected the two consoles with the screens. Electronic lock hidden between two consoles… she huffed. Right, this would take her too long.

"Tehra?" She lifted her com link up to her mouth. "I cannot find the lock to his living space."

"Where are you?" Tehra's voice crackled.

"Where the consoles are in the waiting area."

"Ah, if you are facing the wall, your left console has a detachable keyboard, under that is the electronic lock."

Altharya walked over to the console, hooking her fingers underneath the keys. It flipped up, revealing a small keypad with numbers and letters. "What is the code?"

"Combination is a date as far as I am aware. Fourteen, ten, three hundred seventy and then…" Altharya hastily pushed the buttons as Tehra listed off. "The letters are OPL."

Once she pressed the last button, the pad flashed up green three times. Silent, metallic clicks echoed in the empty room. She looked in the direction of the door, leaving the keyboard to fall back into its place. After the third loud click, the door slid sideward. A staircase leading up was revealed, like a gaping hole that was sucking out the heat from the room. Whatever she was searching for… it was up there.

"Got in," she mouthed into the comm and shut it off.

Shaking, she stepped towards the stairs, letting the door slide shut. Suddenly, the pricking sense of danger was back in her gut. As if something or someone was watching her. Had to keep going, the sooner she got out of here, the better. Upstairs looked smaller than from the outside. Three rooms cramped around the small living space that began at the end of the stairs. Two large couches forming a semi-circle around the holo-vision, the rest of the room was bare. Unused, just a prop, with dust coating the ports and projection boards.

The entire apartment felt dead, unlived in. No decorations on the wall, patchy white where Altharya presumed the pervious owners' ones had been. She looked to the other doors. Unused too, unlike… one, the metal was shinier. The shaking grew as she approached it and she pushed it open, revealing a pitch black room. Goosebumps raised on her arms and neck. Instinctively, she reached for the wall to her side. Patting it down for a light switch. Her fingers slipped over the switch. Weak, yellow light flickered up from a lamp that dangled from the ceiling.

Heart thundering in her throat, she took in the room. Unlike the other rooms, this one felt more lived in. Numbness spread from her fingertips. Here, the hatred simmering in the shadows was far stronger. A malevolent current that strung up her nerves, every fiber in her being screaming to run. Staggering over to the desk, she bit her tongue to not whimper in her discomfort. Two set of drawers under the desk, shelves decking out the right side and the window with heavy shutters closed in front of it. More boxes, datapads and even a safe.

The drawers were locked, a resistance keeping them from being pulled out. Frowning, she listened again. Heavy, it clinked as if made of metal. She reached out in the Force, pulling at the heavy bolt that locked the drawer into place. Hinges creaked, the hooks screeching as they forcefully were pushed back.

It snapped open, its contents jumbled and scattered. Surprised, Altharya blinked. Had she truly tagged that hard? She looked down to her hands, flexing her fingers. Maybe a one-off, after all she was weak in the Force. Focus on the task! She shook her head, sifting through the contents. Dataspikes, many of them, far too many for one person to use. Who needed so many?

Her fingers hit the bottom… a hollow sound rang out. False bottom? Boba had told her one night about a mission he had once found what he was contracted to find in one of these. She knocked on it again. Hollow again… definitely a false bottom. Neither seemed there to be a mechanism to pull it out.

There was no other option. She held her hand out over the drawer, spreading her fingers out, summoning the Force… and pulled at the drawer. It jerked violently… more resistance. Damn this… she grunted and knelt down to look at the drawer from underneath. On it were four places where the metal seemed worn down. Regular wear, four places… hooks?

Just how? How did Emmet, who was not force-sensitive, open this drawer? Did he use a key? But then there would have to be a lock… or a remote? Or… she turned to look at the shelves, pursing her lips. Failing now was out of question.

In that moment, the air shifted. Little electric charges shocking her spine making her straighten up. In her ears a whirring arose, crawling over her temples to her forehead. A warning. She had run out of time…. No time… she thrust both of her hands over the drawer. Fingers cramped apart and she tore at the bottom. Again it refused…

Her mouth drew into a snarl. Open! By the stars, she would…. Gritting her teeth, she yanked again, pushing more into this one last attempt.

With a loud metallic shriek, the hinges and hooks broke. The bottom split, hovering out with its edges jagged and broken. She flicked her hand to fling the part to the floor. Her eyes were drawn to what was lying inside. A tool she immediately recognized. Two-pronged hyperspanner, used to work with a shuttle's engine. The Force had wanted her to find this….

Lifting her fingers, she made the tool float out to her waiting hand.

Her heart shuttered.

Footsteps….

Not her own. Paralysed, she stared at the wall where the stairs would be leading up to this floor would be. Tool in hand, the footsteps pounded below her rapid heartbeat drawing ever closer.

Stars, she had to get out. Yet, her muscles would not let her move. Frozen, she was forced to listen as the footsteps came closer. Too late to run, shivering she threw herself underneath the desk, making herself melt into the desk's shadows. Knees digging painfully into the scratchy carpet, she waited.

Where could she get out even? The windows were closed, the shutters were barred shut. Right now, she was trapped. She would have to wait for the other to leave and hope to the Stars that they did not find her. The footsteps had gotten so close, she could hear the floorboards creaking slightly just outside the room. Her heart thundered so loudly, she was sure the other intruder would hear her through the wall.

The handle was turned down, slowly and in a smooth motion. Her breathing stopped, leaving only the pounding of her heart in her ears. Time had stopped and she watched from beneath the desk as the door opened. Instinctively, she pressed herself against the wall, her breath stuck in her chest. Still and silently pressing the tool against her chest, her hands cramping at how strongly she was clutching at it.

"What…?" was whispered horrified.

A tall man whipped around the door, holding a blaster out. She had to hold a hand in front of her mouth to not let a gargled scream escape her. Frantically, the man jerked around, blaster pointing at various points in the room. Searching for someone, his mind sharply roaming around. However, there was strained fear underneath it all. He hesitated, frowning in confusion and then relaxed his stance slightly. The same stance Boba had drilled into her before even letting her touch a rifle.

For a long moment, he stood there. His fear soured suddenly, his feet shifting into a rapid movement to look for… someone. She looked closer at him. The uniform he wore was bland bearing no symbols, grey, disguising his form. Not someone she recognized, or had been in their vicinity. Who was he? What was he doing in Emmet's house?

Was he looking for the tool in her hand too?

"How….?" He sounded simultaneously awed, stunned and full of horror.

The drawer… she glanced to where she had discarded the false bottom with its jagged edges.

"I know you are in here!" He suddenly yelled.

She bit into her hand hard, as not to yelp in shock.

"Reveal yourself!"

He sounded like someone who was used to giving orders… the tool weighing heavily in her hands. Only once had she heard this way of talking before. Back on Teth, when a fleeing Imperial officer had to have his bionic eye replaced. What was an Imperial doing here? Here in the Drog system, in Emmet's house? In the middle of the corporate sector!

Tehra… the comm! How could she forget? Hand shaking, she took it from her mouth, fumbling for the little button on her wrist.

The click was too loud. Everything froze for a long moment, not even a heartbeat could be heard. The man stood stock still just in front of the desk. Definitely must have heard it…. Stars, please.

"I heard you," his voice shook. "Drop the stealth… I have detection goggles on me. I will shoot to kill if you do not show yourself!"

Goggles? Mouth dry, she simply stared. Ones used to detect people using stealth generators? What should she do? What could she do?! Tehra, please hurry!

"I will count to five!"

Five?! Her eyes flitted to the still open door. If she bolted now, she'd run straight into the solid steel door. The only way would be right through the man. Trapped, she was trapped…. Could he even see her with those goggles? She did not know how this power worked!

"One…," she heard him swallow.

She could not prevent the gasp escape anymore.

"Two!" He dropped into a crouch, blaster aiming directly into her face, yet his eyes seemed unfocused, unseeing.

His finger was very still on the trigger. Only a twitch, and a blaster bolt would bury itself right into her head.

"Three…." He drew out the number, frowning and stood up.

Now or never. Her only chance to flee! If she dropped her invisibility, he'd kill her. She felt bile pressing back up. Imperials… her head swam.

"Four!" He called out coldly.

She thrust her hand out, gripping his arm in the Force. Propelling her forward, she swiped through the air yanking his arm to the side. A bang exploded in her ears, but she had already shoved the man aside. Ripples shot over her skin, a surprised yell already fading away. Her invisibility had dropped, but she was already out of the door.

"Hey!"

She could barely hear his shout as she crashed into the outer wall. Another flicking of her fingers, the force of the movement leaving them numb, she made the door slam shut on the man. Shock turned into a flare of panicked anger, an outraged yell punching into her. But, she was already flying towards the staircase. Please, please… let the door still be open.

She crashed around the corner to the stairs. Her wrists screamed in pain when she caught herself from slamming into the wall again. Closed…, no….Stumbling, she came to a halt, nearly falling down. Closed? Oh no. Whirling around, she feverishly looked around…. Where was Tehra? Metal banged against a wall making her flinch. She froze. Opening the door below would take too long. Where else… The window! If she could break it… she thrust out her hand, palm facing upward toward the glass. Cracks appeared, spider web white, yet too thin, not interconnected enough for the glass to break.

"You! Turn around! Slowly and keep your hands where I can see them!" The man growled behind her, safety on his blaster clicking off. "What is your business here?"

Stars… too late. The shivering was back, she could barely lift her hands, her strength fleeing her body. Force, think, think! What had Boba told her? Slowly she turned around. Assess first, then when they least expect it, incapacitate.

In front of her stood the human man, small and stout. He felt foreign in this moment, out of place even in the town. Eyes shifting, never at rest. Experienced, the blaster in his hands steady as it directly at her chest.

"Answer me!" He demanded loudly, face twisted into a snarl that showed his teeth.

Answers? He wanted answers? After threatening to kill her?

"I…," she blurted out, not sure what to say.

"What is Fett's part in all of this?" He hissed, not letting her finish. "What are his plans?"

"What?" She spluttered in surprise, eyes wide.

The man frowned deeply then. "You are his partner, are you not? What are you doing here?"

"I am here on my own terms." She winced at the nervous titter that snuck into her last word.

"Lie!" He growled back, tightening his grip on the blaster. "What is Fett's game in this?"

"Two people die in a freak accident," Altharya snapped back, watching the man's jaw fall open in surprise. "A shuttle nearly crashes into this town and you wonder why I am here investigating?"

For a moment, the man simply stared at her, jaw slack. Though, he caught himself quickly. "You? Alone? No…" he shook his head. "You are far too green for this. Someone put you up to this. Who? And what are you doing with this tool?"

She tilted her head to look at the tool she was still holding. Would he even listen to her if she told him? There was no space to reason with him. Yet….

"And who are you to make demands of me?" She snapped back, still keeping her hands up. "You are an intruder here too!"

"I am the one with a weapon," the man taunted with a short laugh.

Where was Tehra? Inhaling, she tried to calm her rapidly beating heart, tried to dispel the electricity charging the hair on her forearm. Cruel flashes glimmered in his eyes, determined, hateful. Hiding something… her fingers twitched. Air rushed into her lungs, cold stabbing her chest that sent a manic prickling over her face.

Out of time.

"You will not shoot me," she spoke, summoning the Force into her voice, pushing them into the man's mind.

His mind was open, vulnerable. Like pressing down on cloth, she slipped in with ease.

"I…," the man scrunched up his face, confused as the words forced themselves into his head and out of his mouth. "Will… not shoot you."

Eyes grew blank, a misty veil falling over them as his limbs relaxed. The blaster was lowered, pointing to the floor. Nothing moved, she did not dare to even twitch a muscle. Watching him blink into the sun light that fell through the window. Slowly, deliberately so, she placed one foot to the side, towards the stairs. If she could… if there was enough time…

"What…"

Her hand shot back out. Winds howled in her ears, rushing over her arm and over her fingertips. A pained gasp and the blaster cluttered to the floor.

"You will not shoot me," she repeated frantically, the prickling now down in her throat. "You will let me go!"

He convulsed, hands shaking, the veins in his neck and face started to throb visibly. Confusion mixed with hatred and the overwhelming need to do what she had said. Let her go… she curled her fingers in, pulling her command back to the forefront of his mind. The rushing in her ears grew, her blood bubbled just as her heart slowed finally. Everything grew calm then, still while the pressure in her ears reached the edge of popping.

She uncurled her fingers, pressing against the man's will. Easily as blowing a feather away, his mind gave away. Blood shot eyes sought hers out, gargled chokes escaping him. Instinctive pleas, begging her for… mercy? The muscles in her finger cramped up, mercy? Mercy… could she give it? His hands were shaking, twisting as they clamped around his skull, fingers drilling into the skin of his temples.

Release him…

Yet, she would not move. Watched the agony writhing in front of her grow. She had to turn her head away. Boiling needles stabbed into the back of her eyes… If she hadn't stopped him, he would have killed her. Without remorse, without second thoughts. Why should she grant him mercy? Clarity slowly sunk into her heart and her head back around, she stared blankly back.

Without remorse… without mercy…. Once she let go, he'd kill her.

'Your safety comes first, always' Boba had drilled into her, made her recite it even while half-asleep.

In her skull, a crack resounded in her skull. Streaking pain lashed out at the back of her head… she whimpered and stumbled backwards. A scream ripped from the man's mouth as he collapsed into a heap on the floor. One hand slapped near his dropped blaster, blood from where had dug into his skin dripped down. The Force was reeling, leaving her head spinning and stomach turning on itself. Weak, all her strength had seeped out. Through her half-hooded eyes, she could only watch him writhe. Like waves of a disturbed lake, the fractured thoughts crashed against hers, despair and pain echoing in each of them. The imprint she had left was like a raging fire eating up water.

What had she done?

Wet gargles, weak coughing… fingers nearest to the blaster twitched, reached out for it. Paralysed, she watching him grab at it. More than once, it slipped through his hands. Horrified, she slipped sidewards, scrambling away. He pulled it towards him… intent on…

Too late… she realized too late. The blaster was jammed into his mouth…

"No!" She shot forward, the Force crashing back to her command.

Too late… the bang from the recoil froze her mid-motion. Blood coated the wall and floor, while smoke rose from the back of his skull. Amongst the blood, she swore she saw brain matter slip down. Her eyes started to burn with how wide she had ripped them open. Had to get out… she jerked up, flying down the stairs. All was a blur until she reached the window she had come in.

"Altharya?" Tehra's voice made her jump.

The door to the office, the one she had just run through to get here… there stood Tehra, rifle in hands.

"I heard a blaster shot!" Tehra lowered the rifle, eyes flying to every corner.

"We need to get out!" Altharya slammed against the window, her voice high and shrill. "Where were you?!"

"Boba arrived," Tehra held up a hand. "He is distracting everyone right now for us."

"We have to get out," Altharya yelled, trying to open the window with her shaking hands. "There is… was… there was someone and…"

"Later," Tehra grasped her forearm, yanking her away from the window. "Come!"

Smoothly, Tehra whirled around, pulling her forcefully towards the entrance. With the tool clutched to her chest, Altharya stumbled after Tehra who kept her yanking mercilessly her away. Like a blur, Tehra flung her out of the open door. She sailed through the air, unable to breathe, before landing on her stomach. All breath was knocked out, she could not move…. Yet, she was not given a moment to catch one when Tehra pulled her up and towards the crack in the wall.

"No one will be looking," Tehra hissed into her ear, pushing her through the biting thorns. "Fett's distraction should give us enough time to get out of here!"

She stumbled out, nearly faltering in her steps unable to lift her feet anymore. But Tehra's grip returned on her forearm immediately, forcing her to keep moving. Like a blur, she was pulled through the deserted roads. Unusual, the thought came and fled as soon as it came. What was Boba doing? As soon as she was yanked around a bend in the road, Boba's and Monts' house coming into view, Tehra slowed down.

"No one should have seen us," Tehra muttered, throwing a brief look over her shoulder. "You can catch a breath now."

Altharya leaned against Tehra, rubbing her temples where a headache was slowly growing.

"I will signal Fett that we are out," Tehra pressed several buttons on her com. "Let's get you inside."

"Where was he?" Altharya asked, straightening out.

"Following a trail," Tehra replied. "Apparently, there were footprints leading back to town."

"I… see," Altharya rubbed her forearms. "I just… need to sit down."

The house was eerily quiet, once Altharya wandered inside. No Kihroya bouncing around, Boba had taken her with him, no Monts nor Kertan. Quiet and still, as if death hung in the corners and little nooks. She had killed someone… again with the Force. Second time. Second time a murderer, yet somehow… she felt nothing. That man there, she did not even know his name, he would have killed her if she hadn't…. Hadn't what? Mind tricked him? Shudders started shaking through her, teeth chattering against each other.

She had just wanted him to let her go…. How had it all gone so wrong?

"Now, what happened in there?" Tehra asked while pushing her into the couch.

"I would like to know as well!" Boba's voice suddenly rang out and Altharya could not prevent the flinch jerking her away from Tehra.

"I came as fast as I could," Boba muttered to Tehra sliding up beside her.

"Your distraction was good enough," Tehra whispered back. "There were no witnesses to our escape."

"I saw to that," Boba retorted drily, but his shoulders tensed up. "Now… what happened?"

Altharya tightened her hand around the tool. How had neither of them seen it yet?

"I…," she started, yet no words formed and she choked.

A frown appeared on his face. Concerned he slowly knelt down in front of her. Slow and careful movements. She could not rip her eyes away from each little motion he made.

"Fett, I asked her to investigate Emmet's house," Tehra quietly explained. "I called you as soon as her distress signal came."

His eyes darkened just as his mouth drew into a very thin line. "That was dangerous."

"She is capable," Tehra argued sharply.

"Well, something went wrong!" Boba griped back.

"There was someone else in that house," Altharya finally found her voice, even if watery and small. "Not Emmet… someone else, he was searching for something, I think."

Boba's frown deepened. "What happened then? Where is this man?"

"Dead," she breathed out, feeling herself deflate as tears came back. "I killed him."

Boba jolted, shocked almost. "Are you…?"

Fine? Alright? She tilted her head to observe him from underneath her eyelashes. By now he should know, more tears collected in her eyes and everything blurred.

"It was either me or him," she simply answered.

It was… or maybe she was just lying to herself again. Who knew? Not her.

"You do not sound fine," Boba's hand curled around hers that held the tool. He must have seen it. Why hasn't he asked yet? "Was it an accident?"

His concern broke through the haze, steady and warm. It released the tension pinching at her shoulders.

Shaking her head, she repeated what he had taught her: "My safety first."

He opened his mouth, surprise at hearing his own line quoted back at him just as understanding dawned on his face. "Self-defense."

"He pointed a blaster in my face," Altharya swallowed heavily. "I… I… tried to…"

"You tried what?" Boba prodded.

Tehra understood first. From the corner of her eyes, Altharya saw the Togruta's body go rigid with her eyes widening in terror.

"I told him to let me go," Altharya finally felt the blockage lift from her mind. "I… I don't know, my will was stronger. I told him to just let me go… but he… he killed himself."

"What are you saying?" Boba asked harshly, his grip on her hand had grown so tight, she nearly yelped from the pain flaring up.

The metal from the tool stabbed into her finger, liquid seeping in. She winced, drawing in a hissing breath. Brown eyes softened and he loosened his grip.

"I used the Force," she confessed. "The only way…"

"The only way to get out," Tehra finished for her, horror sneaking through her usual calm tone. "Fett," she turned to look to Boba who turned his head to look at her. "I have seen this happen once. Altharya's will was far stronger than the man's and his mind could not cope with it."

"What do you mean?" Boba exchanged suspicious glances between them.

"You were too powerful," Tehra spoke directly to Altharya then. "His mind…" she scrunched up her nose in obvious discomfort. "His mind shattered."

"Too powerful?" Boba's question seemed far away again.

"Maybe I shouldn't use that term. Too strong perhaps. Does not matter, right now," Tehra shrugged.

Did not matter anymore, Altharya looked to her clenched fists, where the tool she had stolen was still hiding. Did not matter. A life did not matter… no, that was not what Tehra had meant. No, stop thinking. She took a deep breath. What was meant that it was done, in the past, she could not undo anything.

"She needs some space," Boba said then, squeezing her hand he was still holding slightly.

"Alright, before I go, however," Tehra seemed hesitant then. "Have you found anything? I can take it from here with Monts if you had."

Altharya pried open the hand Boba was holding revealing the tool. Little bit of blood stuck on her fingers where the two prongs had pricked them.

"A hyperspace voltage spanner," Tehra gasped, reaching for the tool. "Let me…," she fell quiet suddenly, pensive… a dark tint growing in her presence, a foreboding sense of doom. "Oh no."

"They are used for working on ship engines," Boba explained then. "If something goes wrong in the voltage fields, the entire engine can blow up in an instant while mid-flight."

"What happened to that shuttle," Altharya realized, growing ice-cold down to her fingertips.

"Fett," Tehra muttered and turned the tool around, so the bottom of it faced them. "This is Imperial-issued. Ones you can only find in the Imperial star fleets."

Boba frowned, inspecting the tiny engraved star. "Could have been traded? Handed down as a second-hand? There are a lot of bounty hunters here who do jobs for the Empire."

"I sensed it being connected to the events," Altharya grabbed his hand, tugging on him.

Please listen to her! Believe her on this!

He snapped his head around to her, eyes seeking out answers in hers. Silently, she begged him to believe her. For a long moment, he stared into her eyes, searching them as if wishing this to not be true. Not wishing this to be the truth. His fingers stroked over her wrist. An assurance, something for her to focus on while her thoughts finally settled.

He dropped his head briefly. "I believe you," he said then. "How are you feeling now?"

"I am fine," she tried to assure him, even if a numb feeling had taken root in her stomach. "I am not hurt nor do I feel like I am disassociating."

"You are not though," he quirked an eyebrow at her.

"Just did not expect him to…," she shook her head unable to repeat it.

Sympathy shone from his face then, his thumb brushed briefly over her palm. "A lot of things do not go as we would like them to."

"Still…," she closed her mouth, unable to say more.

That she had forced him to kill himself, no longer felt right to say. It felt wrong, gut-wrenchingly sickening, to speak the words. What she had done was unforgiveable.

"I did not…," she swallowed. "It was either me or him, and I chose myself."

Boba chewed on his bottom lip, hesitant before saying: "You feel bad for choosing your own life?"

"My second," she whispered. "I was taught all my life to another's life before mine…."

A knowing look passed on his face, as he regarded her silently. Two, he remembered as wall. One, the first, to save him and now to save herself. Too strong, too forceful, too unrelenting… someone had died while losing their mind as she had forced her will on theirs. Did this make her a monster? Had she always been one?

"I need to go back," Tehra said then. "Otherwise people will be suspicious."

"Alright," Boba replied, not bothering to turn to look at Tehra. "I will keep you updated."

With that, Altharya could hear the door click shut… letting some calm wash over her as only her and Boba remained in this space. Only them, she was safe.

"What are you feeling?" Boba broke the silence.

"Scared," she confessed. "I sensed his pain, what I had done to his mind and I did not stop."

"We all were in this situation before," Boba started slowly, measuredly turning the words over in his head. "You do not wish for them to die and they do."

"You too?"

"Yes," Boba straightened out to sit down next to her. "So has Tehra, Monts… all bounty hunters learn this lesson. To be honest, I didn't think yours would happen as soon as it did." His face darkened then. "I am not happy that Tehra threw you into danger like that."

"I survived though," she pointed out, feeling her weight tilting towards him almost instinctively.

"Still," he growled. "This could have gone so many ways…" he shook his head. "It was risky and you are lucky you were able to save yourself." His mouth twisted as if he had tasted something bitter. "I am glad you were able to do what you did."

Altharya blinked in his direction and this once he returned her stare. An understanding lay there, his attempt to try to approach that part of her. To open up.

"I feel like I should not feel how I am right now," she voiced. "I feel dirty, like a monster…. On Teth, I had plenty of patients who died away even when I tried everything. This should be no different. But it doesn't…."

"It is different," Boba gently interjected. "You are directly responsible, even if you had not intended it."

She breathed out, shakily and a sob was working its way up. Quickly, she pressed a hand in front of her mouth to prevent it from escaping.

"If you hadn't, you'd be dead," Boba spoke again. "Your safety comes first, just as you said. Either way," he raised his voice. "Emmet will discover the body very soon, if not now should some of the neighbours have heard the blaster go off. Best if we are not around for that."

"What do you mean? Go away?"

"Yes," Boba stood up. "Not to draw immediate suspicion to us since we were away."

"Weren't you nearly in town?" She frowned up at him.

"I wasn't," he smiled sheepishly at her. "My distraction didn't need me in sight of others."

She looked down to where the tool had been in her hand, the two pricks had stopped bleeding. Yet…

"Boba," she called and he looked at her questioningly. "They will know there was a force sensitive."

He immediately stiffened. "How?"

"I tore a metal drawer out," she winced slightly. "I was in a panic and…"

He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "No one outside us, Monts and Tehra know you are force sensitive. If we leave now, no one will suspect you."

Numbly, she stood up so she stood face to face to him. "I trust you in this."

She offered her hand to him, his eyes immediately drawn to the motion and then fixated on the dried blood on her fingertips. A whirlwind of emotions raged behind his shields, too slippery for her grasp, but she was not trying to sense. Confusion, surprise and… she'd know the distinct bell sound of joy anywhere. Strangely there was no shaking in his fingers when they gripped hers, firm and warm. What she didn't expect… what made her mouth open slightly in surprise, was him pressing her hand to his forehead. Head bowed, with the back of her hand pressed to his skin. Within the blink of an eye, he had dropped her hand, already turning away to march up the stairs towards the roof. She had to hurry to catch up with him at the bottom of the ladder that led up to the roof.

"Where are we going exactly?" She asked as he pushed against the hatch.

"There is a lake not too far away from here," he explained, pushing the hatch to the side, opening the access to the roof. "At this point in the year it is really shallow…. It is something you will have to see to know what I mean."

"We are not taking the ship, are we?" She questioned, already knowing that she'd be carried there.

"Flying would waste too much fuel and draw unwanted attention," he replied. "Jetpack is easier."

Once she stood next to him on the roof, with the hatch closed, he stepped towards its edge. There he extended a hand out to her, waiting for her to accept. Nervous flitters raced all around him when she stopped in her tracks. Was this his way of giving her a choice?

With an exhale, she took his hand. "Not that I have much of a choice," she tried to joke, forcing a small smile to her face.

He flinched, a sad sheen appearing in his eyes. "I…," he shut his mouth tightly before pressing forth. "Nevermind."

Sad… and there was nothing he could do about. Almost… almost she said the plea for freedom again. The one way to ensure that he no longer held this power over her would end. That they had the option to… whatever this all meant, just discuss and sort it out. Almost… It didn't feel right. Not now, not here.

That moment was gone as soon as it came. She was pulled forward and hoisted up with his arms securely gripping around her waist underneath her arms. Even though she was closer, he felt distant, far away as a star in the sky.

She barely noticed him stepping off the ledge, the roar of the jetpack drowning everything out. Eyes burning, the only sound louder was the wind howling cruelly in her ears, eyes and face. Singing of… doom, death… and grief to come.

* * *

 **AN: Sorry for the long wait. Lots of rejections happening lately, so I was not in the right headspace to write and edit (my other stories had been finished for updates months ago). I won't lie by saying that I will try and get the next chapter out soon. The next chapter might take this long as well, even though I have most of it already written down.**

 **This is solely my fault and I apologise.**  
 **I am asking you guys not to give me concrit for this chapter. I hope you understand.**


	25. Chapter 25

Once she squinted her eyes against the wind did the noise and heavy weight go away. They were soaring over tree tops, darkened leaves moving underneath them. For a long moment, she stared down, fascinated, before the trees disappeared and they flew down the cliff side down to a valley. It broadened, as they started descending, yet the sight that lay beyond robbed her of breath momentarily. A lake, large, far larger than she would have imagined stretched out from the mouth of the valley. Boba landed them not too far away from the shore. Trees still surrounded them, the water sparkling ahead of them in the setting sun's light.

"So…" she started. "Why here?"

Boba chuckled. "We have to wait until the sun has set."

"Why?"

"You will see," he simply winked at her. "This is a salt lake that dries up in this season and is hence shallow enough to walk on."

"Wait," she held up a hand. "How deep is the lake normally?"

"Several tens of meters," Boba shrugged. "There is a river feeding into it, but in the summer seasons, so around this time, its water level sinks enough that it cannot flow up a hill to go into this lake."

"Oh," Altharya mouthed. "So… what is a salt lake?"

Boba blinked. "You never…." Then he shook his head. "I keep forgetting you grew up on Teth."

"What is that supposed to mean?" She glared at him.

"You grew up in the jungles of Teth," Boba shrugged back. "From what I have seen, you got large rivers."

"The first town I lived in on Teth, was at the coast," Altharya interceded.

"But no salt lakes," Boba corrected, one of his eyebrows shooting up.

"You still did not explain what they were."

"It is a body of water that has no access to the ocean and in dry periods the water evaporates leaving behind the salt with little water," he finally explained.

"And there is something that you want to show me once the sun sets?"

"Yes," he replied, his hand softening a bit around her wrist. "My father used to take me here sometimes. Right now, the light falling onto the lake makes it work like a mirror to the sky."

"Mirroring the sky?"

He started marching towards the shore. "After the first death I could not prevent, I came here to calm down."

"What happened?" She felt herself deflate slightly, her throat was tight again.

The man's bloodshot eyes crept back into her mind, his desperation laying sour on her tongue once more. Her breath hitched, the disgust crawled under her skin again. She shuddered and Boba's hand on her shoulder squeezed gently. A silent reassurance. It had been either her or him. Had to remember this.

Was the only the way to move on.

"Monts used to have a partner," Boba began then, pushing her towards the shore. "One who became addicted to alcohol when the Empire was founded. On a mission, he was too drunk and I called out to him about the mine," he sighed before continuing. "He stepped on it, even with my warning."

"He died?"

"Not at first, no. I had to shoot him to stop his suffering," Boba looked forlorn into the distance and she hesitantly reached out before flinching away. This was… she bit the inside of her cheek and touched his shoulder. Her sympathy had some meaning now, one that rushed loudly like blood in her ears. "Monts took it hard and I needed to be away from him for a bit."

"So you came here."

"Yes," Boba seemed pensive now. "Once you see what I mean, you will get why."

"The mirror?" She frowned.

"It is more than that," he replied quietly.

They stepped out of the trees then, onto a rough sand shore. The sky had gained an orange-pink tint, sparkling off water… yet… she could not stop her eyes widen. A mirror… her mouth opened, but she could not find the words. More than that… the sky was, hands settled on her waist guiding her forward. Water splashed around her boots stepping into the shallow lake. There was no horizon, only sky meeting… the sky. Sun light flared out, its rays seemingly enveloping everything. Silently, Boba guided her further in. Away from the shore.

"It is like walking in the sky," she finally breathed out.

One hand on her waist slid up, just underneath her ribcage. Resting there where her heart pounded against it.

"It's why I came here," Boba whispered into her ear. "You just forget where you are and can pretend you are nowhere and everywhere at once."

"I can see what you meant now," she teased.

"Good," he vibrated from quiet laughter behind her. "We are not far enough yet, at some point you will not see any shore line."

"All alone," she asked turning her head towards him.

He grinned broadly at her, eyes sparkling. "All alone."

They kept walking for a felt eternity, until he pulled her to a stop, his hands falling away from her waist.

She turned around and… just as he had said. Just them, the sky and the illusion of infinity. By then night had started to fall, dark blue hues diffusing into the vibrant colours above their heads.

"Makes one feel so small," she whispered, craning her neck. "So insignificant compared to this."

Boba remained quiet for a moment. "How are you feeling?"

She bit her lower lip, looking down and towards him. "Still heavy."

His face fell a bit. "There will be more instances of these things happening," he said slowly, putting his hands on her shoulders. "You must learn to move past them."

"You make it sound so easy," she muttered back.

"It is not," Boba admitted.

"You killed so many," Altharya huffed, slowly grasping around his elbows. "I can't imagine it being difficult to you."

His face fell then. "Not when I _didn't_ want them to die," he admitted. "When I am on the job, I cannot afford to think about who I have killed."

"I see," she tightened her grip on his elbows.

"You will have to learn to shut them out once you…" he stopped, swallowed heavily. "Once you are with Darth Vader, any flinching on your part will be a weakness he will use against you."

Once… the sword hanging over her head. The inevitable doom awaiting her when Boba or Vader deemed it safe for her to be delivered. How the idyll of a place could make her forget? Tears pressed against her eyes then, burning through any resolve she had built.

"How can you even move past from something like this? I destroyed this man's mind!"

One hand settled on her cheek, gentle, soothing where the thumb rested on the cheekbone. Night had fallen then, the galaxy strip shimmering above their heads. Black sky all around them, she could only really see the shape of his face while the light had grown otherworldly blue reflected back from the water.

"You cannot change the past," Boba said solemnly. "Take your time now, but then you must promise me" – he stared at her imploringly – "that you will move on. Anything else will get you killed."

"Is this what you learned?"

"Yes," he grimly smiled. "I was far younger than you then."

"How old?"

"Sixteen," he replied. "And you?"

"Me?" She asked.

"You said you had patients before that died in your care?"

"Doctor Struhn would not let me assist him in surgeries until I was eighteen," she recounted. "But there were patients that died while I cared for them outside. Illnesses we did everything to treat and they just faded away or died in their surgery recovery…"

"Who was your first?"

"I was twelve," she lowered her eyes, their boots were touching. "An elderly woman was experiencing jaw pains, a heart attack and she just closed her eyes and died while I was preparing her for surgery."

"You did what you could," he then said, his other hand cupping her other cheek. "Think of it this way, you tried. Sometimes that is all you get."

She carefully eased closer to him, her arms settling around his waist. "Is this what Tehra meant with 'it does not matter'?"

"It is a way to keep your sanity," he replied. "The man that held the gun to your face, if you hadn't intervened…"

"I know," she interceded. "I just…"

"Tehra said you were too powerful."

"I was I guess," she flinched away, but his hands kept her in place.

"Spell it out to me," he said. "Tell me, so I can understand."

There was an openness lingering in her cheeks, seeping down to her heart, slowing it down. Stars bloomed in his eyes and… her mouth had grown dry then.

"What I showed you the other day," she began hesitantly. "was not everything I've discovered. Do you remember when you first chased me on Teth?"

Boba's mouth twitched, before he nodded, but he did not say anything to interrupt her.

"Do you also remember when you and the other bounty hunter caught up with me on that roof top?"

He frowned, suspicion worn openly on his face.

"She caught up to me before that, ready to kill me. But I made her stop, confuse her a bit, convince her that I was not _there_."

His eyes widened then. "You mean… she had already caught up to you when I got up on the roof?"

"Yes," she replied.

"You manipulated her mind," he stated in slight disbelief. "Is this what you did?"

"Rion could not _see_ me, Emmet could not _see_ me," she listed off. "At first I thought they just did not notice me, but I realized I could influence someone's mind subconsciously to just not see me. Or later, I could become fully invisible."

"Invisible?" Boba sputtered. "That… would make sense. I remember my father teaching me how to prevent such…" he twisted his mouth briefly. "what you were doing."

She looked down. "Tehra said I was too powerful for the man's mind, it cracked. I sensed his agony … and I did not stop."

"It was either you or him," Boba reminded her then. "Whether you had pulled a trigger or done what you have done, it would have not mattered."

"It does not matter now," Altharya replied. "Still feels…"

"Takes a bit to move past it," Boba reminded her.

She smiled ruefully at to him. "I am fine."

"I can see that," he joked, slowly pushing her to move backwards. "But I still want to show you something."

"Oh?" Altharya raised an eyebrow at him. "I thought…"

"We are close to the magnetic field lines, here," he whispered with a wink. "Do you know what that means?"

She frowned. "No? Is there…."

He opened his mouth, but closed it. "I am surprised you do not know this. Still got some time before it happens, but I promise you, what you have seen so far has nothing on it."

"Making a lot of promises," she teased, gripping his wrists.

"Since when have I broken a promise?" Boba retorted, smirking broadly then.

Before she could say anything more, he looked up, above her head and the smirk turned into a smile. "Look!"

He turned her around, hands on her shoulder keeping her in place. Something she was grateful for… the night sky was… she could have never imagined the colours glimmering in it now. Vibrant green, blue and purples flashed across, moved and some moved like curtains in a light breeze. Her mouth fell open in awe. And… to her feet, the same lights were sparkling back.

They stood… her head was whirling…. Where was the boundary? Where did the sky and water meet? An aurora… she had read about them, back in another life. Where such events meant what culturally… but… never had she ever seen one. It reminded her more of… space. Of the otherworldly nebula in text books on astronomy.

"And?" Came the soft question, close to her ears, raising the hair on her neck, arms and shoulders.

"I…," she could not really form a coherent word that described it all. "I've never seen this. Feels like we are everywhere and nowhere."

A low chuckle vibrated around her back. She shivered lightly, goosebumps spread around her shoulder blades and neck. Tension fled her body, heat spread from her stomach to her face and down to her toes.

"Like we are in the middle of the universe?" He asked, too quietly and somehow it felt distant.

"Yes," she mouthed watching as the purple-green lights shimmered above her head and at her feet.

Dizzy, she staggered around to face him. His face was doused in bright light and deep shadows. Eyes darkened to black pools with turquoise sparks glimmering in them, purple sheens had placed themselves on his cheeks. In awe, she watched them move, lighting up planes and dips in his face and throwing them into darkness just as quickly. They were nowhere.

Who they were, where they were… who they were to each other. Didn't matter… she didn't want it to matter right now. What mattered was them in this place, in this moment… She lifted herself on his toes, hands settling on his neck. A muscle moved as he swallowed and his hands shifted to her waist, guiding her movement up.

Far too close, she could sense the tingling, the prickling of his presence molding around her mind, her body… Her mouth opened, she breathed in… His forehead dropped to hers, their noses were touching.

One movement… all that was needed. His hands gripped the cloth of her tunic tightly. Desperation, longing… and then… fear. Sour fear drove into her chest, chasing away the heat. She squeezed her eyes shut. Forbidden, this was not what was supposed to happen. Remember? Even if she wanted it so badly, even if he did. This was wrong.

"We shouldn't," he muttered, lips moving against her forehead then, slowly but insistently pushing her down. "I am sorry…"

It was quiet, and she fell back to her heels. Water splashed and she hung her head.

She was no fool. No. It _mattered_ who they were, regardless of where they were. This would haunt them every step, every choice they made. Cruel, this was a cruel fate. The one she had let some of her guard down to was the one who held the strings on her life. Whether she'd be delivered to certain death or the loss of her very self. Here… in an illusion of disembodiment… sweet and cruel, but it was just that. An illusion. Nothing was real, she had been stupid to even indulge in the little affection they had allowed themselves.

"Let's just go back," she turned around, to throw one last glance up. "We stayed away long enough."

Once they returned, he'd be pulled away for meetings, questions… pretending to be concerned about whatever the village elders thought necessary to discuss with him. Just so she could have some solace, be alone in their room that seemed too small in her mind now. But it was what she needed. Be alone, no Boba, no Monts, no Tehra. Just no one, but herself and her thoughts. She needed clarity to squash those feelings of affection. What would Master Renstan say if he knew? Disappointed that she could not control her emotions? That he rescued the most imperfect Jedi Youngling, whose powers were too dim and who could not resist the slightest temptation?

"As you wish," his reply was cold, tone-less, back to being impenetrable in the Force.

She had her eyes shut the whole way back. The whole village was in an uproar when they touched down on the roof. Lights burned everywhere, the frantic bustling of people in the streets screeched on her nerves and she winced when Boba's com started to beep.

"Go to our room," Boba suggested noticing her reaction. "Do not move from there. I will handle this."

She merely nodded, grateful not to make up excuses to hide in their room. Once in their room, she locked the door, pulled the curtains shut and switched off the lights. Huddling into a corner under the window, she slung her arms around her legs. What had she turned into? Weak willed, lost her focus, lost her clarity…

Yet.

She bit her lower lip, feeling the air in the room prickle as the Force jumped against her skin. That was not true any longer. Since when did she have such a grasp on her powers like now? Never before. 'There was no emotion, there was peace'. The line rang hollow to her now. However, it was not her lived truth anymore.

What was truth truly? She huffed out a bitter short bark of laughter. Who was she to question what the Force wanted? Or… did she just no longer care what the Force wanted? Who was she? In the grand scheme of things? Not even a speck, but here and now, she could fill the whole house and somehow probably fill out cracks in Boba's life.

What was she thinking? Emotions… they… She pushed her forehead against her knees. What were they? Weren't they what made her empathetic? Feel sympathy? What had Struhn told her once? But she had dismissed him so easily, keeping the Jedi's words too close to her heart and mind. Emotions were filters through which a world is experienced.

Just why… just why did it have to all awaken with _him_? With a bounty hunter of all people! She shouldn't, yet it was the reality. There was no way around what had brought them to the constellation they were in now.

A tiny shock raced up her spine, shaking her shoulders, spreading goosebumps down her arms and chills clung to her fingers. She clenched her hands into fists instinctively, frowning at the sudden cold. Danger? Again? One more far away, but one that was approaching fast. The electricity in the air sparked, tasting like a lightning bolt ready to strike. Who…?

It would never stop.

The danger, the hunting… the moment she had been captured by those bounty hunters on Teth, it had been over. She'd be hunted, chased… sought to be destroyed until she was nothing more than ashes on the bottom of a lake or a rotting corpse on crumbled steel and stone. Condemned… there was no other way around it. Condemned and trapped.

Just… the colours of the sky back on the lake sprang unbiddingly to life behind her eyelids. Dancing vividly, shapes moved, started to clump together. Shapes of people, mirrored all around. Her head fell to the side, hitting the hard wooden wall to the side. More colours, more swirls that threw clouds of dust around materialized… Whether behind her eyelids or whether she was seeing, she could no longer really tell.

A mirror… to mirror… calm, a surety gripped at her limbs, her heart and mind then. Illusions were mirrors of reality.

She opened up to see.

The answer to her plights stared right into her eyes.

* * *

 **AN: Thank you so much for the lovely reviews! Anyhow, after this chapter I will write three chapters in a row before publishing the one after this chapter. There is a twist in the story where I know you will not like being kept in suspense for a few months. Please bear with me and I truly hope you will like how I resolve the issue that has kept the two literally "so close yet so far away".**


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